Gold futures experienced a slight pullback on Thursday, February 26, 2026, with New York Comex futures for April delivery falling 0.7% to $5,191.60 per troy ounce. Despite the dip, prices remained firmly above the $5,100 support level, and the metal is still up more than 3.5% for the week.
The market's primary focus is on the high-stakes U.S.-Iran nuclear talks scheduled for the same day in Geneva. U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff has warned that Tehran could produce fissile material for a nuclear bomb within days, keeping traders on edge. Analysts, including Tony Sage, CEO of Critical Metals, suggest that a breakdown in these negotiations could drive investors toward safe-haven assets like gold. ING analysts added that any escalation involving Iran would likely provide further support to gold's price.
Technical analysis presents a bullish outlook. RHB Retail Research analyst Joseph Chai noted a fresh bullish candlestick pattern on the daily chart, indicating eased selling pressure. He sees potential for gold to move toward resistance at $5,500 per ounce, with a breakout possibly pushing prices toward $6,000. This view is supported by upward-trending 20-day and 50-day simple moving averages.
However, high U.S. interest rates are acting as a cap on short-term gains. The prospect of the Federal Reserve holding rates steady for longer reduces gold's appeal as a non-yielding asset, creating competition from interest-bearing investments. This pressure is being partially offset by renewed uncertainty around U.S. trade policy, which has spurred defensive positioning among investors.
Concurrently, spot gold showed resilience, edging 0.1% higher to $5,174.07 per ounce in Asian trading, supported by a softer U.S. dollar which makes dollar-denominated gold cheaper for foreign buyers. The market also digested modestly higher U.S. weekly jobless claims, which rose to 212,000, offering updated insight into labor market conditions.
Gold reached a record high of $5,594.82 on January 29 and is up approximately 20% year-to-date, driven by strong buying from Asia, central banks, and persistent geopolitical and trade-related uncertainties.
