Is Gold the Last Safe Haven Standing as Trump’s Tariffs Shake the World?

As all safe heavens such as dollar, bonds are crumbling, gold has rocketed to a historic high of $3,237 per troy ounce this week, marking its strongest surge since the early days of the pandemic. The 6.5% weekly gain reflects mounting investor panic as President Donald Trump’s sweeping new tariffs ignite fears of a deepening trade war and economic chaos.

Markets reeled as confidence in traditional safe havens like US Treasuries and the dollar collapsed. The greenback tumbled to a three-year low against the euro, while stocks faced a broad sell-off. Investors seeking shelter from the storm rushed to gold — long considered a reliable store of value in times of crisis.

Beijing’s retaliation on Friday, slapping a brutal 125% tariff on US imports, only intensified market anxiety. With recession warnings flashing and financial instability rising, gold has become the ultimate hedge against uncertainty.

Demand is skyrocketing across the board. Gold-backed ETFs saw their largest quarterly inflows since 2020, and central banks — particularly in emerging markets — are aggressively stockpiling gold to reduce reliance on the dollar. UBS, responding to the surge, raised its 12-month gold forecast to $3,500 per ounce.

China has taken center stage in the physical gold market, with domestic buyers paying hefty premiums above global spot prices — a signal of just how urgently investors are seeking safety.

As US economic credibility takes a hit and Trump's trade policy faces mounting backlash, gold has reemerged as the anchor of global financial stability. With geopolitical tensions rising and market trust unraveling, the precious metal’s rally may just be getting started.

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