Gold slipped to around $4,050 an ounce on Monday, ending a two-day rebound, as renewed clashes between the US and Iran near the Strait of Hormuz pushed oil prices higher and reignited inflation concerns. The conflict has escalated since Thursday, with Iran targeting a container ship, a vessel carrying Qatari oil, and military bases in Kuwait and Bahrain, triggering multiple US retaliatory strikes. Both sides later agreed to halt further attacks ahead of peace talks scheduled to resume this week in Doha, Qatar.
On the macroeconomic front, data released Friday showed that US PCE inflation was broadly in line with expectations, prompting investors to slightly scale back their expectations for Federal Reserve rate hikes this year. Market participants are now looking ahead to the latest US monthly jobs report and the ISM Manufacturing PMI for additional guidance on the future path of monetary policy.
