Donald Trump says gold imports will not face US tariffs
President’s intervention comes after shock plan to hit bullion with duties triggered price surge
Donald Trump said on Monday that the US would not impose tariffs on imported gold, easing fears of disruption in the world’s bullion market.
“Gold will not be Tariffed!” the US president wrote on his Truth Social platform. His statement ended days of market uncertainty triggered by a US Customs and Border Protection ruling last week outlining new duties on imports of widely traded bullion bars.
Spot gold prices fell 1.2 per cent to $3,357 a troy ounce in Monday afternoon trading in New York after Trump’s post, while US gold futures dropped about 2.5 per cent to $3,407. The benchmark Comex contract recorded its largest one-day decline in three months, closing down $86.60 at $3,404.70.
Trump’s intervention came days after the Financial Times revealed that the US would hit one-kilo gold bars with tariffs, triggering a surge in gold futures to a record intraday high of $3,534 per ounce.
On Friday, the White House said it would issue a new executive order “clarifying” its tariff plan for gold — a move taken in the market to mean that it would adjust or scrap the duty.
News last week of the CBP ruling blindsided traders and created an unusually wide premium in futures prices of more than $100 over London spot prices as banks, as refiners and dealers raced to secure metal for delivery.
Switzerland, which refines about 70 per cent of the world’s gold, was seen as particularly exposed. The CBP ruling came just days after Switzerland’s President Karin Keller-Sutter failed to strike a trade deal with Trump to soften the high tariffs the US imposed on her country.
Much of Switzerland’s output is shipped to the US for investment and industrial use.
The unexpected CBP decision marked the first time the US had sought to levy tariffs on bullion, a product traditionally exempt because of its role in the financial system. The move appeared to overturn an April White House statement that gold would be excluded from sweeping trade measures.
Analysts warned the episode could redraw global bullion flows and undermine New York’s position as the largest gold futures market.