Gold and silver prices continued their historic rallies, respectively as the precious metals hit new record highs on Tuesday.
Gold prices breached the $4,700 per ounce level for the first time as safe-haven demand continued to rise.
On the other hand, silver on COMEX hit a record high above $95 per ounce.
Meanwhile, oil prices jumped more than 1% as the commodity found support amid growing expectations for stronger global economic growth and a weaker US dollar.
Bullion soars high
Tuesday saw gold prices surpass $4,700 an ounce for the first time, driven by escalating global tensions that fueled another flight to safety.
Following US President Donald Trump’s threat to impose tariffs on eight European countries, gold and silver prices surged, reaching new record highs at the beginning of the new trading week.
Gold is now trading at $4,741.47 per ounce, silver at $94.035 per ounce.
“The US president’s latest escalation against NATO allies is likely to further shake market participants’ confidence in the US dollar as a safe haven and drive them to other safe havens,” Carsten Fritsch, commodity analyst at Commerzbank AG, said in a report.
Gold has experienced an extraordinary rally, surging 9.6% in the first 20 days of 2026 and an impressive 70% since the start of Trump’s second term a year ago.
This unprecedented rise is primarily fueled by escalating geopolitical tensions, with expectations of monetary policy easing also providing a significant tailwind.
Furthermore, robust purchasing by central banks and substantial inflows into Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) have played a crucial role in contributing to this surge.
Gold is considered the ultimate safe-haven asset because it is largely immune to the influence of politicians and central banks. Evidence of this can be found in the strong inflows into gold ETFs, according to Fritsch.
Last year, ETF inflows, according to World Gold Council data, exceeded 800 tons.
This marked the second-highest annual inflow on record, surpassed only by the peak year of 2020, which saw massive monetary policy easing by central banks globally in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
Gold ETF inflows saw a resurgence last week, following a sluggish start to the year 2026.
Meanwhile, supported by its structural market deficit and its designation as a critical mineral in the US, silver saw a significant rise of 147% in 2025.
The metal has continued its upward trend this year, gaining nearly 34% to date.
Oil jumps 1%
The rise in oil prices was underpinned by expectations of stronger global economic growth and a softer US dollar, while investors also kept an eye on President Donald Trump’s tariff threats directed at European nations that opposed his efforts to purchase Greenland.
The threat of a renewed trade war intensified over the weekend following an announcement by Trump.
He stated that, effective February 1, he would impose an additional 10% tariff on goods imported from a list of European countries: Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Finland, and Britain.
This levy is scheduled to increase to 25% on June 1 unless an agreement is reached regarding Greenland.
On Tuesday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced that the EU’s executive branch is developing a package aimed at supporting Arctic security.
China’s increased crude oil imports also supported prices on Tuesday.
In December, China’s crude oil processing reached 62.46 million tons, translating to an average daily volume of 14.73 million barrels.
Although slightly lower than the previous month, processing significantly exceeded the level of the previous year.
Chinese refineries processed a record 737.6 million tons of crude oil in 2025, which equates to 14.77 million barrels per day.
Despite this record processing volume, China’s crude oil imports consistently exceeded the refineries’ needs, both in December and throughout the entire year.
At the time of writing, the price of West Texas Intermediate crude oil was at $60.12 per barrel, up 1.3%, while Brent was 1.2% higher at $64.71 a barrel.
Morrison said:
Prices appear to be consolidating now, having pulled back sharply from the ten-week high hit just under a week ago.
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