Key points:

• Gold touches $3,387 on Tuesday, rising nearly 5%
• Fed rate decision Wednesday could swing sentiment
• Metal is up roughly 30% this year on strong demand

Bullion hit a session high of $3,387 on Tuesday as traders fled to the metal ahead of the keenly anticipated interest rate decision. Will Powell buckle under the pressure?

🔥 Gold Jumps Almost 5%

• Gold XAUUSD is up almost 5% in the past two days, hitting a session high of $3,387 Tuesday morning as investors piled into the safe-haven asset ahead of the Federal Reserve’s highly anticipated policy meeting this week.
• With Chair Jerome Powell set to speak Wednesday, markets are gearing up for what could be the central bank’s most scrutinized press conference in months.
• The yellow metal continues to thrive in an environment riddled with political tension, murky inflation signals, and a wave of economic uncertainty fueled by President Trump’s tariff maneuvers. Traders aren’t just hedging interest rate risk — they’re bracing for surprises.

👀 Will Powell Hold the Line?

• While the Fed is widely expected to hold rates steady in the 4.25%–4.50% range — where they’ve been parked since December — the tone of Powell’s message will be what moves markets.
• This may be the final “easy call” in a cycle that’s growing increasingly complex. Trump’s tariff rhetoric has introduced fresh headwinds just as inflation had begun to cool. More recently, on Sunday, the US President brought back fears of global trade tensions when he said he had authorized 100% tariffs on films produced overseas.
• Fed watchers will be parsing every word for signs that rate cuts are on the horizon (especially after Trump has been asking for them for weeks), or whether the central bank remains concerned about sticky inflation and geopolitics.

🏆 A Shiny Year So Far

• Gold is up just under 30% this year and has printed multiple record highs thanks to its reputation as a hedge in turbulent times. April’s volatility — from recession chatter to explosive geopolitical headlines — has only increased its allure.
• Besides being a hedge against inflation, gold also plays a role as a relatively safe haven asset that doesn’t generate yield but performs well amid a low-rate environment. That’s when the opportunity cost of holding gold diminishes because fixed-income assets aren’t getting so much inflows.
• Still, in the current market environment, volatility in gold can be as sharp and unpredictable as in any other megacap asset, such as the S&P 500, Bitcoin or Big Tech. Gold remains about 3.6% away from its record session high of $3,500 hit on April 22.

Source: Tradingview