Gold Surges as S&P 500 Futures Shrug Tariffs

Gold jumped sharply, pushing back toward record highs, as investors brushed aside renewed US tariff threats on South Korea. US equity futures, led by the S&P 500 and Nasdaq, edged higher, reinforcing confidence that trade tensions will not derail the bull market. Asian equities broadly advanced, with South Korea’s market rebounding strongly after an early dip. European stocks were set for a firmer open as risk appetite held up.

Equities

The FTSE 100 closed little changed late on Monday, ending the session marginally higher as strength in mining and healthcare shares offset losses among industrial and travel stocks. The more domestically focused FTSE 250 finished the day modestly higher. Precious metal miners led gains after gold prices pushed to fresh records late in the session, while industrial stocks came under pressure as caution lingered around global trade policy.

Among individual UK names, AstraZeneca and GSK both closed higher on Monday, lifting the healthcare sector after steady investor demand for large-cap defensive stocks. Banking shares also ended higher, with HSBC and NatWest supported by reports they are preparing to raise profit targets when they report annual results. In contrast, Wizz Air fell by the close after confirming it has applied for US approval to operate transatlantic routes, a move that would expand its business but comes amid pressure on travel stocks. Spire Healthcare surged late on Monday after confirming early-stage takeover talks with private equity groups including Bridgepoint and Triton Partners.

In the United States, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite both closed higher late on Monday, extending a multi-day run of gains ahead of a busy week for corporate results and the Federal Reserve. The Dow Jones Industrial Average also ended higher by the close. Large technology stocks provided much of the lift, including Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, Meta Platforms and Broadcom, as investors positioned ahead of earnings later this week.

Elsewhere, Intel fell sharply by the close after issuing weaker-than-expected forecasts, adding to losses from the previous session. Airline shares were weaker, with JetBlue lower after widespread disruption from a US winter storm. USA Rare Earth jumped late on Monday following reports the US government plans to take a stake in the company, while CoreWeave rose after confirming a large investment from Nvidia.

Forex & Commodities

Currency markets remained firmly focused on the yen, after renewed talk of potential intervention by US and Japanese authorities kept the dollar under pressure. The dollar was trading lower against the yen at around 154.6, having retreated sharply late on Monday following reports that US officials had checked dollar-yen rates with dealers. Although data from the Bank of Japan suggested there was no actual intervention, the risk of coordinated action has so far discouraged traders from pushing the yen weaker.

The broader dollar also remained subdued, hovering near a four-month low on the index. Sterling eased slightly against the dollar early this morning but stayed close to recent highs, trading around 1.3680, while the euro was steady just below 1.1880. Attention is increasingly on the Federal Reserve, which began its policy meeting today amid political pressure and questions over central bank independence.

Gold prices pushed higher early this morning, extending gains made late on Monday after spot gold broke above $5,100 per ounce for the first time. Spot gold was last quoted near $5,060, supported by a softer dollar and ongoing trade tensions following fresh tariff threats from Donald Trump. Silver remained near record levels above $108, while platinum slipped back after failing to hold Monday’s peak.

Oil prices edged lower in Asian trading, with Brent crude trading near $65.18 a barrel and US crude around $60.33. The pullback followed news that Kazakhstan is restarting exports through the Black Sea pipeline system, though losses were limited by US production outages caused by a severe winter storm. Investors are also looking ahead to a meeting of OPEC+ members later this week, where output policy for March will be discussed.