Gold rush hits Trump-era Washington, from prices to the Oval Office

Washington Post

a day ago

Donald Trump promised Americans a golden age. In one way, he's already delivered: gold is glittering like never before.
Over the past year, the price of the precious metal has surged by roughly 35 percent, vastly outstripping gains in the overall stock market. Investors are increasingly turning to the metal — used as a safe financial asset for millennia — amid mounting economic uncertainty and heavy buying by central banks seeking to diversify their reserve holdings.
The rally intensified last week, when gold futures in New York spiked after U.S. Customs and Border Protection unexpectedly said that certain widely traded gold bars, many from Switzerland, would be subject to Trump's new tariffs. The unexpected move pushed U.S. prices above the global benchmark set in London, easing only after Trump later announced on social media that gold would not be subject to tariffs.
In Trump's Washington, the gold rush is more than a market trend — it's a decor choice. And business executives who know that come armed with gilded gifts, hoping to win the president over.
The Oval Office now gleams with gold-colored drapes, medallions, frames, figurines, cherubs, eagles and moldings. Corporate executives who have recently visited the president for one-on-one meetings have described the office as overwhelmingly golden. When Apple CEO Tim Cook stopped by last week, he presented the president with a commemorative plate anchored in a 24-karat gold base. A day earlier, a Cabinet secretary took to X to share a video of himself autographing a gold-colored tractor on the National Mall. Meanwhile, the administration has promoted a $5 million 'gold card' aimed at wealthy foreigners.
Known for private residences that celebrate opulence, Trump has transformed one end of Pennsylvania Avenue into an extension of the gilded style he's favored for decades at places like his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, with rooms full of gold touches.
'The Oval Office's transformation from drab and dull under Joe Biden to glittering and glamorous under President Trump reflects a nationwide transformation: a country that was dead and stagnant is now hot and thriving towards a new Golden Age,' White House spokesman Kush Desai said in a statement.
Outside the White House gates, gold is booming in more traditional ways. Dealers report a surge in activity as investors rush to cash in on the metal's rally. Some are selling inherited coins, jewelry or bars; others, including cryptocurrency holders, are converting digital earnings into bullion rather than fiat currency. Some see gold as a hedge against inflation or a safeguard against doubts over the long-term viability of the U.S. dollar as the global reserve currency.
Mike Coan, a gold dealer who runs Marion Adam Rare Coins in Elletsville, Indiana, said his business is headed for a banner year.
'It's basically a runaway train with no conductor behind the wheel,' he said. 'I've not seen anything like it. I've been in business 21 years.'
The surge is also showing up in financial markets. CME Group, an exchange operator, has seen record volumes across futures and options exchanges, according to a spokesman. Its 'micro' gold contract, which is a tenth of the size of its main contract, saw record year-to-date average daily volume of 214,000 contracts.
The reasons for the run-up in gold prices are deeper than presidential decor, economists say. Nearly half the recent run-up in gold prices can be traced to an extraordinary spike in global economic uncertainty, particularly over trade policy, that has approached levels last seen during the early days of the pandemic, according to a recent analysis by EconoFact, a nonpartisan economics publication. Rising expectations for inflation — which often lead investors to buy gold as a hedge — contributed to the metal's climb, EconoFact's analysts said.
For investors, gold offers no explicit yield, unlike bonds, which pay an annual interest rate, or stocks that pay dividends. But holding gold can still provide benefits in an investment portfolio. People will purchase gold when they expect the price of the metal to rise, allowing them to cash it in at a higher price — although there is also a risk of capital losses in the face of a price decline.
'This leap cannot be explained by a sudden increase in the demand for gold as jewelry or for its use in industrial production,' EconoFact wrote in March. 'Rather, it reflects the shifting demand for the yellow metal as a financial asset.'
Another factor behind gold's surge: Central banks, including in China, ramped up purchases after European countries froze Russian assets in response to Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. By keeping the metal in domestic vaults, central banks keep it beyond the reach of foreign institutions and governments. Goldman Sachs says buying on London's over-the-counter gold market has since jumped fivefold.
'This changed the market structurally,' said Samantha Dart, Goldman's co-head of commodities research. 'We think of it as, 'Hey we need to just diversify a little bit more, increase the share of gold in our reserves, because a precedent has been set.''
Goldman expects gold to hit about $3,700 a troy ounce by year's end — up from roughly $3,400 this week — and $4,000 by mid-2026 as central bank buying continues. A troy ounce is slightly heavier than a regular ounce and is historically used to measure precious metals.
The rally isn't confined to markets. The song 'Golden' by HUNTR/X, the fictional K-pop girl group featured in the popular animated Netflix film 'KPop Demon Hunters,' took the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 this week.