Why Gold Prices Do Not Always Rise During Conflicts
Chief Executive Officer of PT Bursa Berjangka Jakarta (JFX) Yazid Kanca Surya has explained the reasons why gold prices do not always rise amid global conflicts, even though the commodity is often regarded as a safe-haven asset.
Yazid explained that the movement of gold prices in situations of geopolitical uncertainty is heavily influenced by the dynamics of the energy sector. The need for liquidity to meet energy supplies often forces countries to sell their gold reserves.
“Energy for some countries that have high gold supplies, they must have high liquidity. A lot of gold is sold in the market. For what? To buy energy,” said Yazid in Jakarta on Wednesday, 15 April 2026, as quoted from Antara.
He stated that this causes the movement of gold prices to run counter to conventional economic theory. Amid escalating conflicts, gold prices can weaken due to liquidity pressures. “Gold should rise, right? It’s a safe-haven commodity. But it doesn’t (rise), it falls. Why? Because energy is disrupted.”
Furthermore, Yazid highlighted the global commodities market, which is currently experiencing a shift in behaviour. Previously, market participants focused on the cheapest price efficiency, but now the orientation has shifted to supply certainty.
Therefore, JFX as a futures exchange is strengthening its trading ecosystem, including promoting the development of more flexible and accessible contracts and expanding retail investor participation. JFX is also increasing connectivity with global markets and enriching the variety of products to support hedging needs.
From an innovation perspective, JFX is preparing micro and nano-sized contracts for several commodities, such as gold, silver, copper, and energy. These products are designed to expand market inclusion, particularly for investors with limited capital.
He explained that JFX is also developing digital gold trading that combines the ease of technology-based transactions with the certainty of physical gold underlying assets. This scheme is expected to balance accessibility and security aspects for investors.
In line with that, Yazid conveyed that JFX continues to promote the strengthening of a transparent, supervised trading ecosystem that provides better protection for all market participants. In terms of performance, several flagship JFX products have recorded significant contributions to trading activities.
In the physical commodities sector, JFX controls more than 95 per cent of the Indonesian tin export market share, with transaction values reaching around US$1.7 billion in 2025. Meanwhile, in derivatives trading, the olein contract (OLE01) contributed 38.7 per cent to the total Exchange Traded Derivatives (ETD) transaction volume of JFX, equivalent to 615,028 lots. The Loco Gold contract dominates over-the-counter (OTC) transactions with a portion of 85.2 per cent of the total volume.
In addition to commodities, JFX offers global securities-based products through the PALN scheme, which includes trading in US stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). This product is part of JFX’s instrument diversification, with transaction trends showing continuous growth in recent years.