Gold prices notched a new all-time high in Asian trading on Tuesday, breaking through a key threshold as unease over U.S. demands linked to Greenland kept investors cautious and firmly positioned in safe-haven assets.
Gold and silver had both surged to record levels earlier in the week after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would impose tariffs on European countries until they relinquish Greenland. While silver saw some profit-taking on Tuesday, gold continued to attract steady buying interest.
Spot gold rose 0.4% to $4,696.07 an ounce, while February gold futures gained 0.5% to $4,701.96 per ounce by 00:04 ET (05:04 GMT). During the session, spot prices briefly touched a record peak of $4,701.78 an ounce.
Gold at record as Trump–Greenland dispute unsettles markets
Bullion remained well supported as uncertainty surrounding Trump’s intentions for Greenland fuelled further demand for safe-haven assets.
That same uncertainty also weighed on the U.S. dollar, helping to lift precious metal prices. On Monday, Trump reiterated his stance on Greenland and, in an interview with NBC News, declined to say whether military force could be used to secure the island.
Concerns over potential U.S. military action intensified in January after Washington launched an incursion into Venezuela and captured President Nicolas Maduro. Trump is now heading to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where he is expected to meet several European leaders.
“When US foreign policy leans towards transactional, unpredictable and bypassing multilateral frameworks, it can erode policy credibility and incentivises diversification away from the USD,” analysts at OCBC said in a note.
“In this environment, precious metals including gold remain supported not by prolonged conflict per se, but by an ongoing backdrop of geopolitical uncertainty and policy unpredictability.”
Silver eases after record, platinum also slips
Rising global uncertainty has prompted traders to scale back exposure to speculative assets and rotate further into physical holdings such as gold — a shift that underpinned a broad-based metals rally through late 2025.
Silver and platinum also benefited from that rally, although both saw some profit-taking on Tuesday. Spot silver edged down 0.1% to $94.2890 an ounce after reaching a record high in the previous session, while spot platinum fell 0.6% to $2,361.47 an ounce.
Industrial metals were also influenced by demand for physical assets. Benchmark copper futures on the London Metal Exchange slipped 0.4% to $12,927.58 a tonne, but remained close to recent record highs.