Gold (XAU/USD) maintained its bullish bias through the first half of the European session on Monday and touched a fresh all-time high, around the $2,896-$2,897 region in the last hour. Concerns over the potential economic impact of US President Donald Trump’s tariffs and escalating US-China trade tensions continued to boost the safe-haven demand for the bullion. Moreover, concerns that Trump’s protectionist policies will reignite inflation in the US turned out to be another factor that benefited the precious metal’s status as a hedge against rising prices.
Meanwhile, the US Dollar (USD) attracted some follow-through buyers amid bets that the Federal Reserve (Fed) will maintain its hawkish stance amid a still-resilient US jobs market and inflation concerns. However, this did little to dampen demand for the non-yielding Gold or prevent any strong intraday upside move. That said, overbought conditions on the daily chart might hold traders from placing fresh bullish bets around XAU/USD. That said, the fundamental backdrop suggests that the path of least resistance for the commodity is to the upside.