Fiscal-Risk Bid Lifts Gold as Silver Sees Profit-Taking

Gold prices rose in late-afternoon U.S. trading Monday, as the metal's fiscal-risk bid held strong even with some profit-taking in silver. Spot gold was trading near $4,648.40 an ounce, up 1.00%, while spot silver was slightly lower at $68.750, down 0.16% on the session.

The recent U.S. inflation and spending data has reduced the urgency of a September Fed hike, but long-end yields and fiscal stress remain a constraint. Markets are now looking to Wednesday's Nvidia earnings, the July PCE inflation report, and Fed Chair Kevin Warsh's Jackson Hole speech for the next read on growth, inflation, and policy risk.

The Strait of Hormuz remains a key geopolitical channel into oil, inflation expectations, and defensive demand, but Monday's market impact came through a lower crude tape. Washington announced new sanctions aimed at Iran, while U.S.-Iran talks remain unresolved and uncertainty persists over when tankers will be able to freely exit the Persian Gulf.