Gold steadied with Iran nuclear talks, tariff news in focus

Gold prices steadied Thursday as U.S. trade tariff jitters supported safe-haven demand while key nuclear talks between Washington and Tehran proceeded in Switzerland.

At 08:55 ET (13:55 GMT), Spot gold rose 0.1% to $5,171.27 an ounce, while U.S. Gold Futures slipped 0.8% to $5,186.66/oz.

U.S.-Iran talks start; tariff jitters persist

Market participants are closely watching diplomatic developments as U.S. and Iranian officials renewed discussions in Geneva over Tehran’s nuclear program.

Any signs of escalating tensions or setbacks in negotiations could further boost demand for gold.

Traders are also assessing the impact of newly announced U.S. tariffs following a recent ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that reshaped the legal framework for certain trade measures.

The introduction of fresh global levies of up to 15% has added to uncertainty over the global trade outlook.

Data released earlier Thursday showed the number of Americans filing new applications for jobless benefits increased marginally last week, as initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose 4,000 to a seasonally 212,000 for the week ended February 21.

So far this year, bullion has remained well supported by persistent geopolitical tensions, central bank purchases and portfolio diversification flows.

"Gold has now recovered more than half of the losses seen during the sharp sell-off late last month," ING analysts said in a note.

"Geopolitical risks remain a key upside factor; any escalation in tensions involving Iran is likely to add further support and reinforce gold’s role as a hedge against shocks," they added.

Supreme Court decision to boost gold - Deutsche

The U.S. Supreme Court decision striking down President Donald Trump’s sweeping "reciprocal" tariffs should be "positive" for gold, but only marginally so, according to analysts at Deutsche Bank.

They argued that the scrapping of Trump’s use of the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA, to impose the tariffs will have only a "debatable" impact on the broader U.S. fiscal picture, flagging that the White House is already pursuing alternative legal justifications, including temporary levies under Section 122 of a separate piece of U.S. trade legislation from the 1970s.

"We think the evidence points to it being gold positive but only marginally so, because the U.S. can come close to, but not fully, replicating IEEPA with Section 122, and because tariff revenue plays a role in ameliorating the projected fiscal deterioration resulting from the OBBBA  One Big Beautiful Bill Act] which reduces government revenue more than spending," the analysts wrote.

Silver, platinum hand back some recent gains

Other precious and industrial metals handed back recent gains Thursday.

Silver prices dropped 4% to $87.315 per ounce after rising more than 2% in the previous session.

Platinum fell 2.1% to $2,282.95/oz after a more than 5% jump on Wednesday.