Gold's appeal fades as Middle East tensions ease

As of 0:46 a.m. (June 25, Vietnam time), spot gold prices fell 1.4% to $3,319.96/ounce. Earlier in the session, gold prices had fallen more than 2% to their lowest level since June 9, 2025.

US gold futures also closed down 1.8% to $3,333.9 an ounce.

Peter Grant, vice president and senior metals strategist at investment brokerage Zaner Metals, said the main factor weighing on gold prices was the easing of tensions in the Middle East. “Safe-haven demand has eased and the market is more risk-on,” he said.

There are still some doubts about whether the ceasefire will hold, and until the situation is resolved, the downside in gold prices is likely to be limited, the expert added.

In another development, a speech by US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell showed that the central bank needs more time to consider whether the tariff hike will push inflation higher before considering cutting interest rates.

The market is expecting the Fed to cut interest rates by a total of 0.5 percentage points by the end of this year, starting with a 0.25 percentage point reduction in October 2025.

Gold prices are always sensitive to US interest rate adjustments, because lower interest rates will weaken the USD, but significantly increase the attractiveness of non-yielding assets such as gold.

In other precious metals, spot silver fell 0.8% to $35.83 an ounce, its lowest since June 5. Platinum rose 1.6% to $1,314.91 an ounce.

In the Vietnamese market, at the close of the session on June 24, Saigon Jewelry Company listed the price of SJC gold bars at 117.50 - 119.50 million VND/tael (buy - sell).