Gold Fails to Rally on Iran De-escalation as Real Yields Crush Metal

Gold prices opened at $4,135.20 per troy ounce on Monday, up 0.7% from Friday's settlement, before rolling over and trading within a narrow range. The metal's response to President Trump calling off planned strikes against Iran and announcing negotiations was unexpected, as it should have sold off hard when a war risk premium came out of the market. Instead, gold prices faded by 0.6% and settled into a range that has held for weeks.

The reason for this muted reaction is that the Iran conflict has functioned as a bearish force for gold in 2026, not a bullish one. Higher real yields have crushed the non-yielding metal, and removing the safe-haven bid and rate-hike pressure has roughly canceled out the effects of taking oil out of the equation.

Physical markets also showed inertia, with Indian 24-carat gold printing ₹14,421 per gram, down ₹1 from the prior session. Silver eased to ₹234.90 per gram and ₹2,34,900 per kilogram, off ₹100 on the kilo.