Investors expect two 25-basis-point rate cuts this year, with the earliest in June.
| Photo Credit:
istock.com
Gold climbed on Wednesday to again hit a record, while silver surpassed the never-before-seen $90 mark, as softer-than-expected US inflation readings cemented bets on interest rate cuts amid ongoing geopolitical uncertainty.
Spot gold rose 1 per cent to $4,633.40 per ounce as of 0525 GMT, after hitting a record high of $4,639.42 earlier in the session. US gold futures for February delivery rose 0.8 per cent to $4,640.90.
Spot silver jumped 4.2 per cent to $90.59 per ounce after breaching $90 for the first time, having shot up nearly 27 per cent already this year.
“US CPI figures showed that inflation remained relatively contained at 2.6 per cent (year-on-year), and risk assets may be hoping for a similarly benign PPI reading to keep expectations alive for further monetary policy easing,” said Tim Waterer, KCM Trade’s chief market analyst.
The US core Consumer Price Index rose 0.2 per cent month-on-month and 2.6 per cent year-on-year in December, falling short of analysts’ expectations of a 0.3 per cent and 2.7 per cent increase, respectively. US core Producer Price Index data for December is due later in the day.
US President Donald Trump welcomed the inflation figures, reiterating his push for the US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to cut interest rates “meaningfully.”
Global central bank chiefs and top Wall Street bank CEOs lined up in support of Powell on Tuesday after news of the Trump administration’s decision to investigate him drew condemnation from former Fed chiefs as well.
Analysts say worries around Fed independence and trust in US assets added to safe-haven demand for the yellow metal.
Investors expect two 25-basis-point rate cuts this year, with the earliest in June.
Non-yielding assets tend to do well in a low-interest-rate environment and during geopolitical or economic uncertainty.
ANZ expects gold to trade above $5,000/oz in the first half of 2026, the bank said in a note on Wednesday.
For silver, the next big figure was the $100 mark and high two-digit percentage gains for the metal seem likely this year, said GoldSilver Central managing director Brian Lan.
Elsewhere, spot platinum climbed 4 per cent to $2,415.95 per ounce, a one-week high. It hit a record $2,478.50/oz on December 29.
Palladium was up 3.3 per cent at $1,899.44 per ounce.
Published on January 14, 2026
