The price of gold on the US futures market hit a record high Friday following a report by the Financial Times that Washington was imposing tariffs on some bullion bars.
The FT said gold bars weighing one kilogram and 100 ounces have been classified as subject to tariffs by the US Customs Border Protection agency鈥攖hreatening to upend global trading of the precious metal.
In reaction, gold for December delivery reached an all-time high at $3,534.10 an ounce (31.1 grams) on the Comex, the world鈥檚 biggest futures market.
Gold, seen as a safe haven investment, already this year reached record highs on tariff concerns and geopolitical unrest.
Commerzbank analyst Carsten Fritsch on Friday said that tariffs on bullion 鈥榳ould have serious implications for the gold market鈥�, with key supplier Switzerland already subject to hefty US tariffs.
One-kilo bars are the most common form traded on Comex and comprise the bulk of Switzerland鈥檚 bullion exports to the US, the FT said.
Fritsch noted that 鈥榞old bars of this size imported from Switzerland into the US would be subject to a 39-percent tariff鈥�.
The amount, one of the highest tariffs imposed by Washington, entered force on Thursday.
鈥楽witzerland is a major supplier of gold bars because it is home to many gold refineries that melt down gold into specific bar sizes,鈥� Fritsch pointed out.
Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo bank, added that 鈥榯he US futures market is often used by bullion banks globally as a hedging tool for transactions in the physical bullion market鈥�.
