Gold poised for fourth monthly gain amid U.S. rare cut expectations

Spot gold rebounded to a half-month high on Friday, as expectations of U.S. interest rate cuts and geopolitical risks drive up demand for safe-haven assets. The most active gold contract for February 2026 delivery on the COMEX (Commodity Exchange) division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose by 1.25 percent over the previous trading day to close at 4,254.9 dollars per ounce on Friday.

According to CNBC, the ongoing rally in gold has been fueled by growing expectations of a Federal Reserve interest rate cut in December, sustained purchases by global central banks, and concerns over geopolitical risks and inflation.

For the month of November, the price of gold futures on the COMEX is on the track to register its fourth consecutive monthly gain at nearly 6.5 percent.

The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME)'s FedWatch indicates an 86.4-percent probability of a 25 basis point rate cut by the Federal Reserve in December, a sharp increase from less than 50 percent just two weeks ago.

According to Goldman Sachs, over 70 percent of institutional investors anticipate a rise in gold prices next year.

Meanwhile, both spot silver and silver futures hit new highs on Friday. March silver futures on COMEX closed at 57.16 U.S. dollars per ounce, up 6.6 percent for the session.

Analysts note the surge is driven by rising industrial demand and mounting concerns over supply shortages. As silver consumption expands in manufacturing electric vehicles, AI components, and solar panels because of its excellent electrical and thermal conductivity, silver inventories in major global vaults, including those in London, have fallen to multi-year lows.

Copper also posted strong gains on Friday, with copper futures on the London Metal Exchange (LME) setting new all-time intraday and closing highs. Benchmark LME three-month copper rose by 2.28 percent to 11,189 U.S. dollars per ton on Friday, while March copper futures on COMEX closed at 5.272 U.S. dollars per pound, a gain of 1.5 percent.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced Wednesday it had launched the 89th wave of Operation True Promise 4, carrying out strikes against U.S. and Israeli targets in the region.

The IRGC said in a statement that Iran and various resistance fronts, through coordinated operations, used heavy missiles, attack drones, and rockets to strike U.S. military bases and Israeli targets.

The statement said the operation targeted Israeli military facilities and assembly points in Eilat, Tel Aviv, Bnei Brak, and other locations, and claimed that, according to local sources, it had caused significant Israeli casualties.

The IRGC also stated that it had hit a location in Bahrain housing 80 U.S. troops, and Iranian ballistic missiles struck a U.S. helicopter formation at a base in Kuwait, destroying one helicopter and damaging others.