Gold and silver suffered a sharp sell-off, shedding an estimated $571 billion in market value within about three hours. Gold accounted for roughly $470 billion of the losses, while silver lost roughly $101 billion. Spot gold dropped about 2.7% to $4,171.85 by 06:27 GMT, and U.S. gold futures fell 2.7% to $4,204.30, taking bullion to its weakest level since early August.
The decline was driven by rising Treasury yields, a stronger U.S. dollar, and renewed focus on Federal Reserve interest-rate policy. Higher oil prices added to the pressure by raising inflation risks. Markets were pricing roughly a 66% probability of another Fed rate increase in October after the central bank had already lifted its target range to 3.75%-4.00% earlier in the month. Elevated yields make interest-bearing assets more competitive and increase the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding assets.
The same macro forces have weighed on crypto assets. The report noted that earlier in the month, hot U.S. inflation pushed both gold and Bitcoin lower despite record institutional demand for bullion, underscoring how higher-rate expectations can overpower safe-haven demand.
