Gold futures gain for eighth straight week on safe-haven demand, central bank buying

Gold futures finished the week higher, marking the yellow metal's eighth consecutive week of gains - the longest stretch of weekly wins since August 2020.

Front-month futures have shattered record highs this week, setting a fresh intraday high of $2,973.40/oz before ending Thursday at an all-time high settlement of $2,940/oz, as uncertainties surrounding global economic growth and political instability have underscored investor appetite for safe havens such as gold, which has jumped 11.7% YTD and 44.1% in the past year.

"Demand for gold is currently being driven primarily by western investors and central banks. ETF investors appear to be jumping on the bandwagon," Commerzbank analysts wrote.

The continued strong appetite for gold comes mostly from central banks, according to Catalyst Funds analyst David Miller: "The biggest factor driving gold to $3,000/oz is massive coordinated buying by BRICS central banks."

A test of $3,000 is starting to look like a question of "when" rather than "if," Pepperstone's Michael Brown said, noting the mark might give the bulls a point to reassess gold's momentum and perhaps take some profit, but upward momentum should continue on safe-haven demand supported by President Trump's tariff threats, lingering trade and economic uncertainty, and persistent geopolitical tensions.

If Trump takes a more aggressive approach to tariffs, raising inflation risks, gold can be viewed as a debasement hedge, and in a more benign scenario, gold would still benefit from falling yields and higher interest rate cut expectations, MUFG analysts said.