The current development of the gold price continues to cause frustration for many investors. Despite the ongoing uncertainty in the Middle East and the war involving the USA and Israel against Iran, gold has so far failed to gain lasting new momentum from these events.

After a strong start, the price of gold slipped twice to around $5,060 during this trading week. Now, it appears that gold prices might manage to stay just above $5,100 heading into the weekend, continuing the persistent sideways movement of the past five weeks.

In Bangladesh, the Bashundhara Multi Steel (BMSIL) project has completed over 50% of its construction. The mini-mill, with a designed capacity of 1.25 million tonnes per annum, remains on schedule for a mid-2026 commissioning despite rising costs due to currency devaluation.

On Thursday this week, a senior official from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) stated that Australian exporters are confident about the prospects for China's economic growth and believe that US tariffs may enhance the competitive edge of Australian exports in the Chinese market. Therefore, they are optimistic about the prospects for their businesses in China. Confidence in China's Economic Growth In a speech in Sydney, Andrew Hauser, Deputy Governor of the RBA, expressed his confidence during a recent trip to China that the Chinese government would take necessary measures to sustain economic growth. China is by far Australia's largest trading partner, and its economic growth and industrial conditions are crucial to Australia's exports. In early April this year, Hauser visited China and met with numerous Chinese organizations and Australian exporters. This visit coincided with the announcement by US President Trump of hefty tariffs on China, leading to a chill in Sino-US trade relations at that time. Hauser said that during his trip to China, he found an extraordinary level of confidence in China's prospects and a belief that China would maintain a tough stance in the Sino-US trade war. Moreover, he observed that people did not expect China to resort to currency devaluation to help offset the impact of US tariffs on Chinese goods. What particularly struck him was the optimism of Australian businesses about the prospects for their operations in China. For instance, the steel and iron ore sectors are Australia's largest export industries to China. Hauser found that companies in these sectors believed that, in the short term, Australia's scale and cost advantages in iron ore relative to other producers were hardly threatened. Hauser stated: "What struck me was the optimism of most Australian companies about the prospects for cooperation with China. This optimism is underpinned by a rebound in market sentiment in early 2025 and the belief that [China] will 'do everything possible' to sustain the economy." "In addition, [Australian exporters] also speculate that recent developments in trade policy may enhance their competitive position in the Chinese market." However, he also pointed out that under the influence of US tariffs, some Chinese goods originally exported to the US may shift their markets to other countries, potentially exposing Australian businesses to fiercer competition from Chinese companies both domestically and overseas. However, it is currently unclear how significant this impact will be, as there is very limited overlap between the goods and services produced by China and Australia. The Reserve Bank of Australia judged that the development of the global trade situation would have a dampening effect on Australia's net inflation, which was one of the reasons for it to cut interest rates by 25 basis points on Tuesday and introduce more easing policies.

As expected, the prices of spot gold and New York futures gold further broke through the $3,500 per ounce mark during the Asian trading session on Tuesday... It can be said that since April 8 (when the gold price was still below $3,000), the international gold price has almost consistently crossed a "milestone" of $100 every two trading days. Given the ongoing turbulence in the US stock, bond, and currency markets during the same period, more and more industry insiders are beginning to speculate whether the global financial system, long dominated by the US dollar, is facing deeper issues. Alex Deluce, an analyst at GoldTelegraph, recently wrote that the global financial system is not only undergoing transformation, but the old order is beginning to collapse. The status of the US dollar as the global reserve currency is no longer so unquestionable. For years, Deluce has been documenting the growing dangers of the West's over-reliance on financial weapons. These financial weapons include sanctions, reserve freezes, and the weaponization of the SWIFT system. Deluce believes these are not tools of diplomatic strategy but early signs of deeper problems: desperation, vulnerability, and a crumbling world order. Deluce stated that just in the past year, driven by record central bank gold purchases, the purchasing power of the US dollar against gold has fallen by more than 35%. This is not a trend but a signal. Meanwhile, the BRICS countries are strengthening coordination, while cracks among traditional Western allies are widening. From Europe to Asia, leaders are reassessing their risks in a no longer stable dollar system. More and more countries are realizing that true monetary sovereignty begins with one principle: zero counterparty risk—and this path leads directly to gold. Deluce said that as trust fades, gold is no longer just a safe-haven asset. It is becoming the foundation of a new system—a shared conclusion he recently reached in discussions with Matthew Piepenburg, a partner at VON GREYERZ. The Safe-Haven Status of US Treasuries Is Weakening, Gold Becomes the Ultimate Safe Haven For decades, US Treasuries have been the cornerstone of the global financial system, seen by investors and institutions as the ultimate safe haven. But this narrative is clearly fading this month. Piepenburg believes there is now a liquidity crisis, "the lubricant of this system is no longer sufficient to keep it running." US government bonds are not providing stability during turbulent times but are instead starting to behave more like risk assets. During the market turbulence earlier this month, US Treasury yields rose when they should have fallen, underscoring the increasing fragility of the system. "During periods of stress, US Treasury yields have actually been rising, not falling. Why are US Treasuries no longer acting as a safe haven?" Piepenburg asked and answered himself, "The answer lies in debt, which is burying the US economy." US federal debt is expected to exceed $37 trillion, and when household, corporate, and long-term welfare debts are included, it surpasses $100 trillion. The entire system is teetering under the weight of its own commitments. "When buried under such massive debt, even Santa Claus can't solve the liquidity crisis," Piepenburg warned. "Without helicopter money, without currency devaluation, there isn't enough lubricant to keep the wheels of this debt turning." He added that this is why gold is being quietly remonetized by global central banks, not as a safe-haven asset but as a foundational reserve asset. "Gold is now a Tier 1 asset. Central banks are net settling in gold. They are moving away from US Treasuries," Piepenburg said. "This is not about getting rich. It's about not getting poor." The Rise of BRICS and Global De-Dollarization The trend of de-dollarization has been discussed in policy circles for a long time, but after the US sanctioned Russia in 2022, it became an observable reality. Initially a statement of geopolitical power, it has now accelerated the adjustment towards a multipolar financial system. "Since the weaponization of the dollar in 2022, 45 countries have started trading outside the dollar system. 30 countries have repatriated physical gold. This is not a coincidence but a reaction," Piepenburg said in his discussion with Deluce. He pointed to the critical shift that occurred when the US froze the assets of the Russian central bank. For many governments, this action shattered the illusion of the dollar as a neutral global reserve. "When you weaponize the world's reserve currency," he said, "you undermine the very trust it relies on." This shift is most evident in the BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa). Despite the rumors about a BRICS currency, Piepenburg believes they may also trust gold more. He noted that the BRICS plan is not to replace the dollar overnight but is undoubtedly moving away from it. Conclusion After their discussion, Deluce and Piepenburg concluded, "What we are witnessing now is not the end of the dollar, but the end of its hegemony." The petrodollar system is breaking. Gold is being quietly reshaped as a strategic reserve asset. The once unshakable cornerstone of global markets—US Treasuries—is being reassessed by the very institutions that once relied on them. The implications of these changes are profound. Central banks are no longer hiding their actions... they are rapidly and decisively turning to gold. Deluce said the real question is no longer whether gold will continue to rise, but whether the public can understand the deeper logic driving this shift.

On Thursday, as US stocks plunged again after a surge in the previous trading session, more and more Wall Street traders are beginning to worry whether the rebound in the US stock market on Wednesday after Trump's decision to temporarily suspend tariffs was just a "dead cat bounce." Meanwhile, at this extremely volatile period, the biggest focus in the US market may still not be on the stock market—because after the collapse of US bonds earlier this week, new pressures seem to be emerging: Not only is the yield on 30-year US bonds starting to move back towards the 5% mark, but the US dollar has also experienced a rare cliff-like plunge, quickly falling below the 100 mark at the start of Friday's session... Market data shows that less than 24 hours after US President Trump reversed his decision in his once-in-a-century trade war to prevent a financial market collapse, US stocks, bonds, and the dollar were again frantically sold off on Thursday as fears of a global recession swept Wall Street. As investors took advantage of Wednesday's historic rebound to sell high, the S&P 500 index closed down 3.5% for the day. The Dow also closed down about 2.5%, with a full-day drop of 1,014.8 points. Specifically, the seven largest tech stocks that rose the most on Wednesday all fell sharply on Thursday: Tesla's stock fell 7.3%, Nvidia's stock fell 5.9%, and Meta Platforms fell 6.7%. Stocks related to economically sensitive companies were also hit hard. The Russell 2000 index, which tracks small-cap stocks, fell 4.3%. The collapse of long-term bonds sent yields soaring again after a brief respite, and by early Friday in Asia, the yield on 30-year US bonds had risen back to 4.93%, once again moving towards the 5% mark. The US dollar also fell for the third consecutive day, with the ICE US dollar index falling below the 100 mark early Friday, hitting its lowest level since July 2023 at 99.66. The reason was that traders liquidated US assets and turned to other safe-haven currencies such as the Swiss franc, which saw its largest one-day gain in a decade on Thursday. Meanwhile, traders flocked to traditional safe assets. In early Friday trading, gold futures surged to a record $3,221 per ounce. (Gold experiences its largest gain since the pandemic) Is global capital starting to flee the US? There is no doubt that despite Trump's "compromise-like" announcement on Wednesday of a 90-day suspension of reciprocal tariffs on dozens of countries, the crisis facing the US financial market seems to have intensified after just one day of relief. As the well-known financial blog site Zero Hedge mentioned, you only need to take a quick glance at the following three charts to understand why the US market is starting to panic. ① The world's perception of US sovereign risk is rising The US 1-year sovereign CDS has recently surged sharply, and the rising cost of CDS usually reflects market panic about credit risk, with investors starting to seek hedging mechanisms. Currently, the US CDS trading range is almost as bad as Italy and Greece. ② The unwinding of US bond basis trades is far from over Swap spreads show that the US dollar funding market, after quickly easing yesterday, is in trouble again... ③ The US dollar is rapidly collapsing The Bloomberg US dollar index, after falling below the 200-day moving average, has continued to fall uncontrollably. Renowned economist Peter Schiff said, "I have never seen such a large-scale sell-off of US assets. The dollar, bonds, and stocks have all been hit hard. I don't remember when the US dollar fell 3.5% against the Swiss franc in a single day. The US's journey on the global tailwind is about to come to an abrupt halt. Buckle up." In fact, since Trump announced plans to impose punitive tariffs on dozens of US trading partners, the recent volatility in US stocks and bonds has been comparable to the pandemic and the 2008 financial crisis, which is enough to illustrate the market's turbulence. These movements ultimately point to the same alarming conclusion: Trump's chaotic tariff measures, regardless of the final outcome, are rapidly eroding confidence in the US economy and could keep the market on edge for the next three months as traders anxiously wait to see how this will unfold. Bill Smead, chief investment officer of Smead Capital Management, said, "This will all end soon—the possibility that we will soon return to happy days is very, very low. This could be the beginning of a huge bear market." This fear reflects a dramatic shift in market sentiment less than three months into Trump's second term—Wall Street had bet that his tax cuts, deregulation, and economic growth policies would continue the stock market bull run. But as Trump fired tens of thousands of employees, withheld federal aid, and unilaterally rewrote international trade rules, these expectations quickly reversed. More worrying than the tariffs themselves is Trump's decision-making style: policies are intermittent, using unconventional pricing formulas and setting unconventional goals. This makes it difficult for Wall Street analysts to predict the direction of events, let alone assess their ultimate impact on stock, bond, and commodity prices. Is the world moving away from the US dollar? Kim Forrest, chief investment officer and founder of Bokeh Capital Partners, said, "Even in emerging markets, we know what their policies are. But in the US, we can no longer perform fundamental analysis on some excellent companies." Since Trump announced the latest tariffs in the White House Rose Garden, the market has arguably experienced a thrilling past six trading sessions. The initial shock triggered a deep sell-off in US stocks, wiping out more than $10 trillion in market value. Then, from New York to Tokyo, from Sydney to London, the sell-off in US bonds plunged global bond markets into turmoil, and now, the new target of the plunge is the US dollar. In a new video released on Thursday, Peter Schiff said that Trump's tariffs are not only ineffective but are also backfiring, exacerbating the trade deficit and weakening US competitiveness. He warned, "The world is moving away from the US dollar." Schiff also emphasized the root cause of the US's persistent trade deficit, highlighting the lack of savings and investment in the US. He believes that excessive domestic spending and insufficient investment have led the US to rely excessively on foreign producers. The US has to rely on overseas factories to produce goods it cannot produce itself. Although Schiff praised Trump's goal of reducing the budget deficit, he predicted that tariffs would have the opposite effect. "Tariffs not only fail to address the weaknesses of the US economy but also impose additional burdens on US consumers and businesses. These tariffs are paid by Americans, not by US trading partners—there is no external income, everything comes from within. And 'tax increases' on ordinary Americans will further burden an already weak economy. Therefore, the US will face more severe stagflation." Schiff warned of the fragility of the US financial system, emphasizing the US's reliance on foreign funds to maintain an unsustainable standard of living. He predicted that this dependence would end in pain, as a devalued US dollar would force Americans to reduce consumption and accept a lower standard of living. "In fact, the US is taking advantage of the world because we rely on global resources to maintain a lifestyle beyond our means. But the rest of the world can only support our extravagance by compressing their own consumption, and this model is about to change." Schiff pointed out, "Change must happen because the US dollar will depreciate significantly. At that time, US consumption will shrink, while consumption in other countries will grow. In this way, the trade deficit will disappear as the US standard of living declines. And the world is accelerating the sell-off of the US dollar, which is laying the groundwork for the upcoming major currency devaluation. "