World Gold Prices Edge Slightly Higher, Helped by Weaker U.S. Dollar
World gold prices edged up slightly in late trading on Monday, 18 May 2026 local time or Tuesday morning, 19 May 2026 WIB, helped by a weaker U.S. dollar, though gains were capped by rising government bond yields and higher oil prices.
Citing Reuters, spot gold rose 0.2% to $4,548.14 per ounce after briefly hitting its lowest since 30 March 2026.
Meanwhile, U.S. gold futures for June delivery were down 0.1% at $4,558.00 per ounce.
The U.S. dollar index was down 0.3% in yesterday’s trade. This makes gold cheaper for holders of other currencies, boosting bullion’s appeal.
“The U.S. dollar index fell to session lows yesterday, and that was a positive factor for the gold market,” said Jim Wyckoff, market analyst at American Gold Exchange.
Global government bond yields continued to rise amid inflation concerns from energy price spikes sparked by the United States and Iran conflict.
This also reinforced expectations that central banks globally would maintain high interest rates for longer.
The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield even rose to its highest since February 2025.
Higher interest rates and yields typically weigh on gold prices since bullion does not offer yields like other investment instruments.
Separately, world oil prices rose about 2% to their highest in two weeks on concerns about disruptions to global energy supplies.
Since the outbreak of the US-Israel war against Iran on 28 February 2026, Brent crude has surged around 55%. By contrast, spot gold has fallen around 13.8% over the same period.
Several investment banks have also begun cutting near-term gold price projections as investor demand softens.
J.P. Morgan was among the first major financial institutions to lower its average gold price projection for 2026 to $5,243 per ounce from $5,708 per ounce.
Separately, other precious metals moved mixed. Spot silver rose 1.4% to $77.04 per ounce, platinum fell 0.1% to $1,972.10 per ounce, and palladium slipped 0.2% to $1,409.75 per ounce.