Gold, silver, and platinum continued their recent downturn this week, experiencing significant declines as investors pull away from precious metals, dismissing them as a safe haven amid the ongoing conflict in Iran.
The value of spot gold was recorded at 7.8% lower shortly after 7:30 a.m. in London (3:30 a.m. ET) on Monday, pricing at $4,126.36.80.
Gold futures fell nearly 10% to $4119.10, marking the lowest point seen in 2026.
The precious yellow metal declined nearly 10% last week, representing its most significant drop since September 2011. Spot gold has depreciated approximately 25% since reaching an all-time high of $5,594.92/oz at the end of January.
Spot silver was trading down 8.3% at $62.24, marking a year-to-date low, almost half of its $117 price point on Feb. 28, when the conflict in Iran commenced. Silver futures saw an 11.7% decline on Monday, trading at $61.66.
The decline also affected other precious metals, with platinum futures nosediving 10.6% to $1,760.90, while palladium fell 6.7% to $1,347.50.
The withdrawal from gold — typically regarded as a primary safe haven asset during market volatility — aligns with the current risk-off attitude in markets as the conflict in Iran intensifies concerns regarding inflation and rising energy costs.
The anticipation of increased interest rates due to the war could enhance the appeal of government bonds to investors, detracting from the allure of non-yielding precious metals, market analysts indicated to CNBC recently.
However, yields on euro zone government bonds rose again in early trading on Monday, as the latest escalation in the conflict left few safe options for investors.
