Gold Prices Rise Amid U.S.-Iran Conflict; Near Six-Year Highs

Investing.com - Gold prices rose on Tuesday in Asia amid bubbling tensions in the Middle East.

Gold futures for August delivery, traded on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, were up 1.5% to $1,439.30 by 1:06 AM ET (05:06 GMT).

The U.S. announced it is imposing new sanctions on Iran on Monday.

It was Washington's response to Iran’s shooting down of an unmanned U.S. drone last week. President Trump had approved retaliatory airstrikes before subsequently calling them off.

”This is the fifth day of gains in a row as demand for the precious metal remains robust due to rising tensions between the US and Iran, a dovish shift by major central banks and a widespread weakness in the greenback,” Helen Rush, senior analyst for precious metals at Capital Markets in London, said on Monday.

Investors tend to seek out gold, seen as a safe haven asset in times of political or economic uncertainty.

Meanwhile, a speech by Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell later this week is expected to be in focus as traders will pay attention to his comments on a possible rate hike at the Fed’s July meeting.

Traders will also turn their focus to the highly-anticipated G-20 summit later this week, where Trump is expected to meet his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping to discuss trade-related issues. Analysts believe a quick trade deal is not likely after the U.S. put more Chinese firms on trade blacklist just days before the meeting.

In response, China's Vice Minister of Commerce Wang Shouwen said Beijing wants the U.S. to stop “inappropriate actions” against Chinese firms.

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