Gold prices steady in Dubai as investors weigh Middle East ceasefire talks

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Gold prices were steady on Thursday morning as investors weighed Middle East ceasefire talks.

The 24K gold price was trading at Dh544.50 per gram, while 22K, 21K, 18K, and 14K were trading at Dh504.25, Dh483.50, Dh414.50, and Dh323.25 per gram, respectively.

Spot gold was trading at $4,513.68 per ounce, down 0.88 per cent. Silver was down 1.34 per cent at $71.64 (Dh262.44) per ounce.

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US President Donald Trump and his administration have reportedly presented 15 conditions to Iran as terms for ending the current conflict.

According to Israel's Channel 12, citing an unnamed US official, Washington has also informed Jerusalem of its negotiations.

However, the report said that Jerusalem is concerned that Trump and his team want to push for “a framework agreement” with Iran, rather than insisting on these demands as a condition for halting the war.

Gold broke out of a nine-day losing streak earlier amid news that the US may be open to diplomatic discussions with Iran regarding the ongoing conflict.

“The five-day pause in attacks on Iran announced over the weekend has offered some respite, sending oil lower and gold higher. That said, no concrete resolution to the conflict has been reached yet, and uncertainty remains elevated, especially as Iran maintains a firm grip on the Strait of Hormuz,” said Vijay Valecha, Chief Investment Officer at Century Financial.

He added that certain central banks have reportedly been selling gold to defend their domestic currencies from war-driven fluctuations.

“Turkey, for instance, which has vast gold reserves of $135 billion as of early March, is expected to trim dollar-denominated asset exposure to defend the lira. Last week, gold-backed ETFs saw outflows totalling $4 billion, marking the third consecutive week of redemptions. However, the possibility of a more diplomatic approach to the conflict has offered gold a breather,” he said.