Gold Prices Plunge Nearly 10 Percent in a Week, Worst Since 2011

KOMPAS.com - Global gold prices continued to slide at the end of this week. Gold prices have hit the worst decline in the last 15 years due to investor worries about the economic implications of the US-Iran war. Gold plunged 9.6 percent this week, marking the largest weekly loss since September 2011. The futures contract related to the precious metal fell 0.7 percent to $4,574.90 per ounce, experiencing a decline after an earlier morning rise. Gold prices are on track for the worst drop since October 2008. Meanwhile, silver futures plunged more than 2 percent to $69.66 per ounce, hitting the lowest closing level since December. This precious metal has recorded declines for three consecutive weeks, with a drop of more than 14 percent. Silver prices are now down more than 1 percent for 2026. The decline on Friday extended the difficult session for precious metals on Thursday, with spot prices falling around 3 percent after deeper losses earlier in the day amid growing concerns about the economic impact of the Iran war. Volatility in the oil market has affected global investor sentiment since the start of the US-Israel war with Iran. Oil prices reached more than $112 per barrel in Friday’s session. US stocks plunged on Friday, dragging the Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq Composite close to a 10 percent drop from recent highs, which Wall Street defines as a correction. Additionally, US President Donald Trump stated on Friday that he does not want a ceasefire in the war with Iran. An equity analyst for metals and mining at SP Angel, Arthur Parish, said that some of the extreme volatility in gold over the past few weeks occurred after a long rally ahead of the US-Israel attack on Iran on 28 February.