【Gold Price Trend】Spot Gold Further Breaks Below $4,500 USD; Gold Shop Per Tael Buyback Price Falls 1,500 HKD Daily (Attached: Chain Jewelry Store Saturday Gold Buyback Prices)

Gold prices continue to decline, weighed down by the Middle East war pushing up energy prices and weakening rate cut expectations, hitting a low not seen in over a month and a half. The week has seen a decline of over 10%, with three consecutive weeks of decline. Spot gold has fallen for 8 days in a row, briefly dropping to around $4,478 per ounce, down about 4%, and closing at around $4,492, still down 3.4%. April futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange closed at $4,574.9, down about 0.7%.

According to data from the Precious Metals Society, at 9:30 a.m. Hong Kong time on Saturday (21st), the 999.9 gold price was HKD 41,000 per tael, a decrease of HKD 1,500 for the day, and compared to the high of HKD 50,000 at the end of January, down HKD 9,000 or 18%.

▼Click the image to enlarge

Chow Tai Fook Group (01929) showed on its jewelry website on Saturday that the buy-in price for gold grains (investment gold) was HKD 41,390 per tael. Chow Sang Sang (00116) website indicated that as of 9:15 a.m. Saturday, the buy-in price for 24K gold bars was HKD 41,390 per tael. Luk Fook (00590) website showed that the buy-in price for 9999 gold was HKD 41,000 per tael, and 9999 gold grains were HKD 41,390 per tael.

Local gold shop websites as of Saturday (21st) at 3 p.m. (reference only, subject to change as shops update prices periodically):

▲ Chow Sang Sang webpage shows the buy-back price for 24K gold bars at HKD 41,390 per tael.

Precious Metals Society’s Friday closing price for 999.9 gold was HKD 42,500 per tael.

According to the Precious Metals Society’s social media post on Friday (20th), the 999.9 gold buy-in price was HKD 42,500 per tael, down from HKD 50,000 at the end of January, a decrease of HKD 7,500 or 15%.

▼Click the image to enlarge

Three key factors causing the sharp decline in gold prices:

• Rising energy prices: Middle East conflict pushing up crude oil and natural gas costs, fueling inflation.
• Weakened rate cut expectations: Inflation concerns reduce the likelihood of central banks lowering interest rates, with US Treasury yields rising.
• Capital shifting: Investors selling gold to cover losses in other financial markets.

Since late last month, following attacks by the US and Israel on Iran, precious metals considered safe-haven assets have been declining weekly. The conflict has driven up oil and natural gas prices, heightening inflation fears and reducing the likelihood of central banks easing borrowing costs. Meanwhile, US Treasury yields and the dollar index have both risen, prompting investors to sell gold to offset losses elsewhere. Gold ETFs popular among Western retail and institutional investors have seen continuous outflows in recent weeks.

Patrick Armstrong, Chief Investment Officer at Plurimi Wealth LLP, said: “It is no longer a safe-haven asset but a speculative asset.”

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