Gold prices surge after Iran says Hormuz Strait completely open

[NEW YORK] Gold jumped after Iran announced that the Strait of Hormuz is now “completely open” for commercial traffic, a major step toward ending a war with the US and Israel that has sent energy prices soaring and threatened economic growth.

Bullion gained as much as 2.1 per cent before paring some gains as the dollar and Treasury yields slumped. A weaker US currency and lower rates are positive for the precious metal as it’s priced in the greenback and pays no interest. 

The Middle East conflict had sparked concern that surging oil and gas prices would stoke widespread inflation, leading central banks to delay interest-rate cuts or even hike rates. That would be a negative for non-yielding commodities like gold.

“In line with the ceasefire in Lebanon, the passage for all commercial vessels through Strait of Hormuz is declared completely open for the remaining period of ceasefire,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on X. Ships can move on the “coordinated route as already announced” by Iranian authorities.

Gold has clawed back some of the war losses in recent days as optimism for a ceasefire grew. It still has dropped nearly 8 per cent since the Iran war began in late February. 

Spot gold rose 1.6 per cent to US$4,864.51 an ounce at 9.37 am in New York. Silver climbed 5 per cent while platinum and palladium both advanced. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.5 per cent. BLOOMBERG