Gold remained steady near its record high, sustaining gains from a 2% rise over the past two sessions as escalating trade tensions drove investors towards safe-haven assets.

Spot gold was trading at $2,913 an ounce as of 8:08 a.m. in Singapore, just $40 below its all-time peak reached last week. Silver, platinum, and palladium saw little change, while the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.1%, marking its third consecutive session of decline.

Concerns over inflation and slowing global growth have bolstered gold's appeal, with the metal already gaining more than 40% since the end of 2023. Bond traders are increasingly convinced that President Donald Trump's tariffs will impact the US economy, with a JPMorgan Treasury client survey showing net bullish positions at their highest level in 15 years.

Trump's latest move saw him double tariffs on China while imposing 25% duties on Canada and Mexico. However, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick suggested a possible path for reducing tariffs on Canada and Mexico, telling Fox Business that there could be room for relief.

In response, Canada and China retaliated with their own tariffs on Tuesday. Ottawa announced phased levies on $107 billion worth of US goods, while Beijing imposed duties of up to 15% on US agricultural exports. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum stated that her government would soon introduce countermeasures against Washington's latest trade actions.

Bloomberg