Gold prices extended gains on Thursday, driven by an escalating trade war between the United States and China, even after President Donald Trump announced a 90-day pause on tariffs for other countries.
Spot gold was up 1.3% at $3,122.02 an ounce at 1129 GMT, after its biggest daily gain since October 2023 on Wednesday. U.S. gold futures were up 1.9% at $3,137.80.
Trump said on Wednesday he would temporarily lower the hefty duties he had just imposed on dozens of countries, but ramped up the tariff on China to 125% from 104% following Beijing's decision to impose an 84% levy on U.S. goods.
The U.S. Federal Reserve's minutes of its meeting last month showed policymakers were nearly unanimous in thinking the U.S. economy faced simultaneous risks of higher inflation and slower growth, with some noting that "difficult trade-offs" could lie ahead for the central bank.
Investors' focus is on U.S. consumer price index data at 1230 GMT to gauge the trajectory of the Fed's monetary policy. The market is currently pricing in 84 basis points of rate cuts by year-end.
Spot silver fell 0.6% to $30.85 an ounce, platinum lost 0.4% to $933.55, and palladium was down 1.7% at $915.68.
