Gold Soars Amid U.S.-Iran Tensions, Weakening Dollar

(RTTNews) - Gold prices surged on Friday to scale a new record high as concerns of an escalation in the Middle East increase after U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed a "big force" heading towards Iran.

Front Month Comex Gold for January delivery zoomed by $67.40 (or 1.37%) to $4,976.20 per troy ounce. Gold spiked $387.80 (or 8.45%) per troy ounce for this week.

Notably, this is a new high for gold prices, which have increased for four consecutive sessions.

Front Month Comex Silver for January delivery also catapulted by $4.949 (or 5.16%) to $100.925 per troy ounce. Silver also skyrocketed $12.8340 (or 14.57%) per troy ounce for this week.

Notably, this is a new high for gold prices, which have risen for three consecutive sessions.

Iran's clerical regime successfully cracked down on a civil uprising that began on since late December and continued for nearly a fortnight.

Iran warned the U.S. against any interference, and its official media also carried reports of threats to Trump's life.

Trump stated that the U.S. now has an "armada" heading to Iran that he wishes he would not have to use, sparking renewed tensions in the Middle East.

The year has started with rising geopolitical tensions, with the U.S. taking control of Venezuela's oil industry, the U.S.-Iran escalation, and the U.S-EU disagreement on Greenland all pushing investors to safe haven investments.

The U.S. dollar index was last seen trading at 97.76, down by 0.51%.

In the U.S., the S&P Global US Flash Composite PMI inched up to 52.8 in January 2026 from 52.7 in December 2025, signaling a modest pickup in business activity.

The manufacturing PMI inched up to 51.9 in January 2026, while the services PMI was at 52.5 in January 2026, unchanged from the eight-month low in the previous month.

The University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index was revised up to 56.4 in January from a preliminary 54.0 and December's 52.9.

Yesterday in the U.S., Commerce Department data revealed that the economy expanded at an annualized rate of 4.4% for the third-quarter 2025, and Labor Department data showed that initial jobless claims inched higher by 1,000 from the previous week to 200,000 for the week ending January 17.

Traders' outlook on the U.S. Federal Reserve's interest rate decision at the upcoming January 27-28 meeting remains unchanged, with 97.2% betting that the Fed will keep rates unchanged , according to CME Group's FedWatch Tool.

On Wednesday, Trump stated in an interview with CNBC that the search for new Fed Chair is almost over and hinted that he has a candidate in mind.

A day before, Trump announced that he had successfully reached a "framework" deal on Greenland after negotiations with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.

Trump had expressed his intention for the U.S. to acquire Greenland, an island territory in the Arctic currently under Denmark's control.

Attempts to sell U.S. assets by some European nations in retaliation for Trump's pursuit, pulled down the U.S. dollar value and pushed up gold prices.

Trump reassured that he would not use military force, which eased concerns in global markets of a U.S.-EU confrontation. However, EU leaders are in unison to counter any deviation in Trump's stance, which is keeping the uncertainty alive in markets.

Russian President Vladimir Putin had talks with U.S. envoy Steven Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner in Moscow to discuss plans on how to move forward with the Trump-authored peace proposal to end the Russia-Ukraine war. Further diplomatic talks are set to take place on Friday.