Gold Outperforms Amid Central Bank Demand

Gold prices fell 1.12% this week, but still outperformed other precious metals due to sustained central bank buying and improving inflows into gold-backed ETFs.

The yellow metal's appeal is underpinned by its role as a hedge against economic uncertainty, with several large global asset managers adding to their gold positions.

Uruguay made its first addition of physical gold to reserves in about 30 years, while Bolivia continued to purchase domestically mined gold, underscoring persistent demand from Latin American central banks.

Palladium, on the other hand, was the weakest performer among precious metals, falling 2.58% due to shrinking ETF holdings and year-to-date outflows exceeding 10%.