Gold tops $5,580, silver jumps 5%

US gold futures for February delivery rose 4.85% to $5,561 an ounce

Gold prices extended their historic gains after the US Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged as expected within a range of 3.50% to 3.75% at the end of its two-day meeting on Wednesday.

In Thursday trading, US gold futures for February delivery rose 4.85%, or $257.4, to $5,561 an ounce, after touching $5,584.3, the highest level ever for the most-active contract.

Spot gold added about 3.1% to a record $5,584.25 an ounce, while spot silver rose about 2.8% to $119.99 an ounce.

The dollar index, which measures the US currency against a basket of six major peers, fell 0.3% to 96.14 by 0609 GMT.

Silver futures for March delivery jumped 5% to $119.195 an ounce after hitting a record high of $119.51, while spot platinum rose 3.25% to $2,789.56 an ounce and spot palladium gained 2.6% to trade at $2,107.11.

The World Gold Council said on Thursday that global demand for gold rose 1% in 2025 to 5,002 tons, the highest level on record, according to Reuters.

The record gains have been driven by continued inflows into safe-haven assets, alongside a decline in the appeal of the dollar amid persistent economic and geopolitical uncertainty and pressure linked to the US administration’s economic policy direction.

Traders are increasingly looking beyond Federal Reserve decisions, with markets watching the possibility of a leadership change as the end of Jerome Powell’s term approaches. Potential successors include Rick Rieder, an executive at BlackRock, who is widely seen as an advocate of more accommodative monetary policy.