- Gold holds ground above $3,020 after Friday’s decline.
- Markets see chances for US President Trump to ease off on tariffs by April 2.
- Gold is still supported in the $3,000 region, though pressure is building for more downside.
Gold’s price (XAU/USD) stabilizes near $3,030 at the time of writing on Monday as traders assess fresh tariff headlines over the weekend. News emerging that the Trump administration will ease off on the broad scope of tariffs being imposed on April 2 brings sighs of relief in markets. Instead, United States (US) President Donald Trump is said to be looking for more specifically targeted tariffs on specific sectors per country or region.
This helps ease the fear of broad reciprocal tariffs. The idea behind these tariffs is to get companies to reshore back to the US. However, a 25% tariff is not high enough to make the supply chains of corporations untenable, and the Trump administration would actually need to impose import taxes of perhaps 100% to 200%, as well as offer big government subsidies, to get companies to reshore their manufacturing, Marketwatch reports.
Daily digest market movers: Takeovers sector
- Johannesburg-based firm Gold Fields said Monday it put forward a non-binding proposal to buy the Perth-based company Gold Road Resources for 3.05 Australian Dollars (AUD) a share in cash on March 7, valuing its equity at 3.3 billion AUD and implying a total enterprise value of 2.4 billion AUD. Gold Road’s board rejected the offer, Bloomberg reports.
- Chinese metals producer Zijin Mining Group Co. shares rose more than 5% after the company posted a record profit on surging Gold and Copper prices. Heightened global economic and geopolitical risks, coupled with tariffs, are increasing uncertainty, the company said in a statement after net income surged 52% last year. Rising demand for Gold Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs), as well as central bank purchases, will push bullion higher this year, Reuters reports.
- US tariffs due April 2 are poised to be more targeted than the sprawling ones, according to US officials familiar with the matter. Still, traders remain wary with officials in China and Australia warning of widespread shocks to the global economy from US trade policy, Bloomberg reports.
Technical Analysis: Unclear reciprocal tariffs
The softer comments on tariffs will mean a bit less tailwind for Bullion. Expect to see some selling pressure on Gold, though the tailwind will not fade completely. Tariffs are still to come, and even if they are targeted and per sector, it could still severely impact markets and certain countries as long the full-scale scope is not yet communicated.
Regarding technical levels, at the time of writing Gold stabilizes just above the intraday Pivot Point at $3,023. Looking up, the R1 resistance stands at $3,046. Should US President Trump push back on earlier comments from US officials on the scope of the tariffs, for example, the current all-time high at $3,057 could face a new test.
On the downside, some red flags are rising as the intraday S1 support stands at $2,998. That means the $3,000 mark is exposed and needs to act on its own as big support. There is no line of defense before it to make sure any downturn is being slowed. Further down, the S2 support comes in at $2,975.
XAU/USD: Daily Chart
US-China Trade War FAQs
Generally speaking, a trade war is an economic conflict between two or more countries due to extreme protectionism on one end. It implies the creation of trade barriers, such as tariffs, which result in counter-barriers, escalating import costs, and hence the cost of living.
An economic conflict between the United States (US) and China began early in 2018, when President Donald Trump set trade barriers on China, claiming unfair commercial practices and intellectual property theft from the Asian giant. China took retaliatory action, imposing tariffs on multiple US goods, such as automobiles and soybeans. Tensions escalated until the two countries signed the US-China Phase One trade deal in January 2020. The agreement required structural reforms and other changes to China’s economic and trade regime and pretended to restore stability and trust between the two nations. However, the Coronavirus pandemic took the focus out of the conflict. Yet, it is worth mentioning that President Joe Biden, who took office after Trump, kept tariffs in place and even added some additional levies.
The return of Donald Trump to the White House as the 47th US President has sparked a fresh wave of tensions between the two countries. During the 2024 election campaign, Trump pledged to impose 60% tariffs on China once he returned to office, which he did on January 20, 2025. With Trump back, the US-China trade war is meant to resume where it was left, with tit-for-tat policies affecting the global economic landscape amid disruptions in global supply chains, resulting in a reduction in spending, particularly investment, and directly feeding into the Consumer Price Index inflation.
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