Trump hints at some flexibility on tariffs, gold prices approach the 3,000 mark again

In early Asian trading on Tuesday (March 25), spot gold fluctuated narrowly and is currently trading around $3,011.87 an ounce. Gold prices fell 0.4% on Monday, falling as low as $3,002.43 an ounce in intraday trading to close at $3,011.86 an ounce. The dollar hit its highest level in more than two weeks, prompting more gold bulls to take profits and investors to assess US President Donald Trump's more cautious stance on tariffs on trading partners.

Bart Melek, head of commodity strategy at TD Securities, said: "We've hit record highs and now the market is just cementing those gains and the dollar's rise is partly reinforcing that."

Decode Forex PlatformGold prices have hit 16 record highs this year, reaching as high as $3,057.21 last week.

The dollar rose 0.2 percent on Monday to close at 104.31, having hit an intraday high of 104.44 in more than two weeks.

Trump hinted on Friday that there would be some flexibility in reciprocal tariffs that will take effect on April 2, which are expected to stimulate inflation and hamper economic growth.

According to the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg, U.S. President Donald Trump is likely to rule out a series of industry-specific tariffs when he implements reciprocal tariffs on April 2, but a Trump administration official warned Monday that the situation could still change and no final decision has been made.

Trump himself will ultimately decide what to announce on April 2, which he has called "Liberation Day" for the US economy. The move is aimed at narrowing the $1.20 trillion global goods trade deficit by raising US tariffs to match those of other countries and offsetting their non-tariff trade barriers.

Trump said in February that he intended to impose "around 25 percent" auto tariffs and similar tariffs on semiconductor and pharmaceutical imports, but later agreed to delay some auto tariffs, prompted by requests from the three major U.S. automakers for exemptions.

The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg also reported earlier, citing an administration official, that industry-specific tariffs were expected to be delayed.

The whirlwind tariff offensive that Trump has launched since taking office in January has three characteristics: threats, repetitions, and delays, sometimes abruptly changing hours before the tariffs take effect, with his trade team adjusting policy at any time based on the reaction of the relevant countries.

The Federal Reserve left its benchmark interest rate unchanged last week and said it would cut rates twice this year by 25 basis points each. Investors are now waiting for Friday's U.S. personal consumption expenditure (PCE) price data, the Fed's preferred measure of inflation.

In terms of the geopolitical situation, U.S. and Russian officials held talks in Saudi Arabia on Monday, hoping to make progress towards a broad ceasefire in Ukraine, and Washington hopes to reach a separate Black Sea maritime ceasefire agreement before reaching a broader agreement.

According to the Kiev Post, the Ukrainian delegation will spend an extra day in Saudi Arabia for meetings with the United States. Earlier today, Russian and American delegations concluded 12 hours of talks in Riyadh on ending the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. The two sides will issue a joint statement on the 25th.

Although Russia, the United States and Ukraine have gathered at the same hotel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to negotiate the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, so far there has been no direct dialogue between the two parties, and the confrontation on the battlefield has intensified. Both sides accuse each other of lacking sincerity in negotiating. The United States is expected to continue its "shuttle diplomacy" plan after the conclusion of this round of separate talks with Ukraine and Russia.

On the 24th local time, a senior Ukrainian government source said that after the US and Russia completed their talks in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, US and Ukrainian officials will hold another round of talks. Details of suspending long-range attacks on energy facilities and civilian infrastructure and stopping attacks in the Black Sea to ensure the safety of commercial shipping are expected to be discussed.

Bloomberg analysis believes that Trump has promised to quickly resolve the three-year war between Russia and Ukraine since before taking office, but so far progress has been limited. According to people familiar with the matter, the White House aims to reach a truce agreement by April 20, but the White House acknowledges that the time to reach the goal may be delayed due to the wide gap between the two sides.

This trading day will release the total number of new home sales in the United States in February and the Consumer Confidence Index of the Conference Board in the United States in March. Investors need to pay attention. In addition, you need to pay attention to the speech of Federal Reserve officials.

(Daily chart of spot gold, source: Daily chart)

At 07:08 Beijing time, spot gold was trading at $3011.73 per ounce.