Investing.com-- Gold prices fell slightly in Asian trade on Tuesday, but remained in sight of recent peaks as demand for safe havens remained underpinned by uncertainty over U.S. plans for trade tariffs.
Bullion lost some ground in recent sessions as the exemption of electronics imports from steep U.S. tariffs on China helped spur some risk sentiment. President Donald Trump on Monday also flagged the possibility for more exemptions.
But Trump’s 145% tariffs on China, coupled with Beijing’s 125% tariffs, largely remained in play otherwise, marking a bitter trade war between the world’s biggest economies. This notion kept gold underpinned by haven demand. Weakness in the dollar, amid a sharp selldown in U.S. Treasuries, also aided gold and broader metal markets.
Spot gold fell 0.4% to $3,224.60 an ounce, while gold futures expiring in June steadied at $3,240.85/oz by 01:51 ET (05:51 GMT).
Gold remains close to record highs amid tariff, recession fears
Spot gold remained close to a record high of $3,245.69/oz hit earlier in April.
Bullion was underpinned by persistent safe haven demand, as uncertainty over the global economy ramped up in the face of a U.S.-China trade war.
Trump’s sectoral tariffs, along with his constant flip-flopping on plans for more levies and exemptions, brewed even more uncertainty over the economic outlook.
Uncertainty over the impact of U.S. trade tariffs saw investors begin pricing in a greater chance of a U.S. recession this year, although the odds of a slowdown did recede after Trump announced a 90-day exemption from most of his reciprocal tariffs.
But the president is now slated to unveil tariffs on electronics and pharmaceuticals in the coming days, potentially heralding more market turmoil.
The U.S. also faces a bitter trade war with China, with both sides showing little intent to deescalate.
Other precious metals advanced slightly on Tuesday, although they had largely lagged gold in recent weeks. Platinum futures steadied at $956.60/oz, while silver futures rose 0.2% to $32.225/oz.
Copper dips with more China cues on tap
Among industrial metals, copper prices retreated and were nursing steep losses in the past month on concerns over the trade tariffs and their impact on copper demand, especially in top importer China.
A swathe of analysts and brokerages trimmed their forecasts for Chinese gross domestic product growth this year, with the trade war set to provide more headwinds.
Benchmark copper futures on the London Metal Exchange fell 0.2% to $9,168.65 a ton, while U.S. copper futures fell 0.8% to $4.6230 a pound.
Focus this week is on more economic cues from China, specifically first-quarter GDP due on Thursday.
Data on Monday showed China’s copper imports fell 1.4% in March, as a speculative frenzy in U.S. markets on expectations of Trump tariffs on the red metal drove shipments to the United States.