August 8, 2025: US gold futures hit a record high on Friday amid uncertainty over whether country-specific U.S. import tariffs would apply to the most commonly traded sizes of gold bars.
Spot prices, meanwhile, eased but remained on track for a weekly gain.
Washington may place the most widely traded gold bullion bars in the United States under country-specific import tariffs, according to a ruling on the U.S. Customs and Border Protection service’s website, which would be a major blow to global supply chains for the metal.
December U.S. gold futures rose 1.2% to $3,494.10 per ounce as of 11:21 am ET (1521 GMT) after hitting a record $3,534.10 earlier in the session, when the Financial Times first reported the news.
“Gold’s panic ascent shows that even safe haven assets are not immune to the volatility unleashed in the confusion of the tariff age,” Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets, Hargreaves Lansdown.
“If there is follow through and no intervention, this could threaten New York’s dominance in the gold futures market, given prices have risen sharply compared to other trading centres,” she added.