Gold Futures Ease As Global Risk Sentiment Improves
By Nurunnasihah Ahmad Rashid
KUALA LUMPUR, June 16 (Bernama) -- The gold futures contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives ended lower on Monday as global risk sentiments improved, said an analyst.
SPI Asset Management managing partner Stephen Innes said gold traded softer throughout the day, even after the weekend's Israel-Iran escalation sent it higher at the open.
He said the decline came as markets reassessed that the immediate threat - oil supply disruptions - now seems unlikely, so both gold and crude were unwinding some of that geopolitical risk premium.
'Risk-on flows have taken the edge off haven demand, and for now, gold is tracking oil more than US Treasuries. Still, with the US Federal Reserve meeting and the Group of Seven (G7) finance ministers gathering in Canada, this week's macro calendar is stacked, and volatility should stay elevated,' Innes told Bernama.
He said gold is expected to swing within a wider band between US$3,375 and US$3,475 per troy ounce, with dips likely to find buyers amid US dollar weakness and persistent concerns around the ballooning US fiscal deficit.
The spot-month June 2025 contract eased to US$3,425.2 per troy ounce from Friday's US$3,430.2, while the July 2025 note dropped to US$3,433.7 from US$3,438.7 previously. The August, September, and October 2025 contracts dipped to US$3,453.2 per troy ounce from US$3,458.2 on Friday.
Trading volume fell to 25 lots versus 56 lots on Friday, while open interest improved to 61 contracts from 50 contracts.
Physical gold was priced at US$3,435.35 per troy ounce, according to the London Bullion Market Association's afternoon fix on June 13.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New Straits Times
an hour ago
- New Straits Times
G7 unity tested as Trump calls Russia ouster a mistake
KANANASKIS, Alberta: Leaders from the Group of Seven nations began annual talks on Monday with wars escalating in Ukraine and the Middle East, as US President Donald Trump said removing Russia from the former Group of Eight was a mistake. The G7 leaders from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the US, along with the European Union, are convening in the resort area of Kananaskis in the Canadian Rockies until Tuesday. With an escalating Israel-Iran conflict, the summit in Canada is seen as a vital moment to try to restore a semblance of unity among democratic powerhouses. In an early sign that they may struggle to reach agreement on key issues, a US official said Trump would not sign a draft statement calling for de-escalation of the Israel-Iran conflict. Speaking alongside Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Trump said kicking Russia out of the former Group of Eight was a mistake. Members removed Russia in 2014 after it annexed Crimea. "This was a big mistake," Trump said. "You wouldn't have that war. You know you have your enemy at the table, I don't even consider, he wasn't really an enemy at that time." Canada has abandoned any effort to adopt a comprehensive communique to avert a repeat of the 2018 summit in Quebec, when Trump instructed the US delegation to withdraw its approval of the final communique after leaving. Leaders have prepared several other draft documents seen by Reuters, including on migration, artificial intelligence, and critical mineral supply chains. None of them have been approved by the United States, however, according to sources briefed on the documents. Europeans are on the same page on most issues, a European diplomat said. But without Trump, it is unclear if there will be any declarations, the diplomat said. The first five months of Trump's second term upended foreign policy on Ukraine, raised anxiety over his closer ties to Russia, and resulted in tariffs on US allies. Talks on Monday will centre around the economy, advancing trade deals, and China. Efforts to reach an agreement to lower the G7 price cap on Russian oil, even if Trump decided to opt out, were complicated by a temporary surge in oil prices since Israel launched strikes on Iran on June 12, two diplomatic sources said. Oil prices fell on Monday on reports Iran was seeking a truce. The escalation between the two regional foes is high on the agenda, with diplomatic sources saying they hope to urge restraint and a return to diplomacy and would encourage Trump to sign a declaration. "I do think there's a consensus for de-escalation. Obviously, what we need to do today is to bring that together and to be clear about how it is to be brought about," British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told reporters. RUSSIAN ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM Further highlighting the unease among some of Washington's allies, Trump spoke on Saturday with Russian President Vladimir Putin and suggested the Russian leader could play a mediation role between Israel and Iran. French President Emmanuel Macron dismissed the idea, arguing that Moscow could not be a negotiator because it had started an illegal war against Ukraine. A European diplomat said Trump's suggestion showed that Russia was very much on US minds. "In the eyes of the US, there's no condemnation for Ukraine; no peace without Russia; and now even credit for its mediation role with Iran. For Europeans, this will be a really tough G7," the diplomat said. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte will attend the summit on Tuesday. European officials said they hoped to use the meeting and next week's Nato summit to convince Trump to toughen his stance on Putin. "The G7 should have the objective for us to converge again, for Ukraine to get a ceasefire to lead to a robust and lasting peace, and in my view it's a question of seeing whether President Trump is ready to put forward much tougher sanctions on Russia," Macron said.--REUTERS
New Straits Times
2 hours ago
- New Straits Times
What's not happening to Middle East crude supply matters more
IT'S often more important in times of heightened tensions in the Middle East to focus more on what is not happening, rather than fixating on the dramatic headlines of tit-for-tat air and missile strikes between Israel and Iran. From a crude oil market perspective, this means focusing on the fact that so far not one barrel of crude oil supply has been lost, and furthermore it is in the interests of all involved parties that this remains the case. Crude oil prices rose again in early trade in Asia yesterday, with global benchmark Brent futures gaining 2.1 per cent to trade at US$75.76 a barrel. This built upon the seven per cent leap on June 13, which saw Brent rise to the highest in nearly five months as Israel launched a series of drone and air strikes that killed top Iranian commanders and nuclear scientists and damaged nuclear facilities. But it's worth noting that the reaction of physical oil prices in the Middle East was more measured than that in the paper market. The price of Dubai swaps, which is a contract settled against physical prices of Dubai crude, rose 5.8 per cent on June 13 to end at US$71.03 a barrel. The gain of US$3.86 a barrel for Dubai swaps contrasts with the US$4.87 jump for Brent contracts. This smaller gain for physical oil is perhaps a sign that traders and refiners are slightly less concerned about a supply interruption than the paper investors in Brent. Even though physical oil prices rose less than paper contracts, both still recorded strong increases. These are a rational response to the escalating conflict, especially since it shows little sign of cooling off, with Israeli attacks and Iranian missile barrages continuing. But for oil markets, the key is whether the risks of attacks on Iran's crude production and export infrastructure, and of Iran attempting to block the Strait of Hormuz, are realistic or imminent. The narrow Hormuz channel between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, and the Indian Ocean beyond that, carry about a fifth of the world's daily oil consumption of up to 20 million barrels per day. It is the route that Opec members Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Iraq and Iran use for the bulk of their crude and product exports, and there are few viable alternatives. However, it is also worth noting that in all the past conflicts that have afflicted the Middle East, the strait has never yet been blocked, although there have been instances when Iran has boarded and detained tankers. It could also be argued that the best option for Iran is to keep the market thinking about the risks to shipping through Hormuz while actually doing nothing to close the waterway. But what would happen should Iran seek what could be termed a nuclear option and attempt to close the waterway? This would stop Iran, as well as the other countries, from exporting any crude, and would almost certainly draw in other powers into the conflict. The United States would potentially act to keep the waterway open, and Iran would also sacrifice whatever goodwill it has among its Gulf neighbours, as well as with China, the only major buyer of Iran's sanctioned oil. China doesn't engage in loudspeaker diplomacy but that doesn't mean it isn't making its views known to both sides in the conflict, and Beijing will be keen to see a rapid de-escalation. The US does tend to make its views known publicly, although these are often somewhat confused given President Donald Trump's habit of speaking off the cuff and contradicting his own senior officials. But the message from Washington also seems fairly clear in that they will help Israel defend itself and only enter the conflict if Teheran directly attacks US personnel or interests. Israel has also limited itself to attacking only domestic Iranian energy infrastructure, such as refineries and storage tanks, measures that aim to make life more difficult for Iranians but not to harm crude production and exports. This is not to minimise the risks to crude supply in the Middle East, but is rather to recognise that even dramatic situations have in the past led to limited supply disruptions and tensions do eventually ease.
New Straits Times
2 hours ago
- New Straits Times
1,300 shops gutted in devastating fire in India's Kolkata
NEW DELHI: At least 1,300 shops were gutted in a devastating fire Monday at a marketplace in the eastern Indian city of Kolkata, officials said, reported Xinhua. However, no loss of life or injuries have been reported in the blaze. The fire broke out early Monday in the 150-year-old Khidirpur market of Kolkata, the capital city of West Bengal. Following the fire, authorities rushed 20 fire tenders to the spot to bring the blaze under control and prevent it from spreading to adjacent areas. A senior fire service official said the blaze in the market spread rapidly due to the densely congested area. The presence of highly flammable materials such as gunny sacks, edible oil, and butter in nearby warehouses intensified the flames, the official said. Police have registered a case to ascertain the cause of the fire. However, a short circuit is suspected to have triggered the fire. –BERNAMA
