Powerful price gains, new highs, for gold, silver on safe-haven bidding

(Kitco News, Monday. Jan 26th, 2026) – Gold and silver prices are strongly higher and hit more new record highs in early U.S. trading Monday. Safe-haven demand is again featured as gold prices overnight pushed above $5,000 an ounce, with February Comex futures hitting an all-time high of $5,107.90. Silver also hit a record high, with March Comex futures reaching $110.065 an ounce. Bloomberg said the “breakneck rally fueled by U.S. President Donald Trump’s reshaping of international relations and investor flight from sovereign bonds and currencies” is pushing safe-haven demand for precious metals. “Gold’s dramatic gains drives home bullion’s historic role as a gauge of fear in markets, with investors looking to navigate uncertainty and the haven appeal of gold rarely being more attractive.” February gold was last up $86.60 at $5,066.20. March silver prices were up $7.632 at $108.935.

FOMC, many global central banks, meet this week; traders expect no change in U.S. rates. The Federal Reserve’s Open Market Committee (FOMC) and as many as 17 other central banks that meet this week are expected to mostly keep their interest rates unchanged amid global economic uncertainty, and despite pressure on the Fed from President Trump to lower rates. “Central banks in Africa may unveil a wave of easing, while those in other regions, such as Brazil, Canada, and Sweden, are likely to retain current settings. The week ahead will see the release of key economic data, including inflation reports from Australia, Japan, and Brazil, as well as GDP data from the euro region and other countries,” said a Bloomberg report.

“We think most FOMC participants can cite data to support holding rates steady at the meeting. That degree of unity would be seen as a vote of support for Powell, who has come under fierce attack from the White House. The most interesting figures to watch are Governors Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman: If they vote with the majority to hold steady, they’ll be signaling to Trump that they side with Powell — including on Fed independence. We expect Waller to vote with the majority, but Bowman to dissent,” said Bloomberg Economics.

U.S. dollar index sinks on forex intervention talk. The U.S. dollar index (a basket of major currencies weighted against the greenback) fell to a four-month low overnight amid the prospect of the U.S. joining Japan in foreign-exchange intervention. The dollar weakened against most major currencies and the Japanese yen rallied as investors debated how any joint intervention to support Japan might further worsen sentiment toward the greenback. A potential currency pact between the U.S. and Japan has reignited discussion on coordinated currency intervention to guide the dollar lower against key trading partners, which could help American exporters compete with rivals. The discussion on a potential currency pact reignited Friday when traders reported that the Federal Reserve Bank of New York had contacted financial institutions to ask about the yen’s exchange rate. Wall Street saw those inquiries as potentially laying the ground for Japan to intervene with help from the U.S., Bloomberg reported.

Russia, Ukraine, U.S. see constructive peace talks. U.S. officials on Saturday said discussions were constructive during the first trilateral meeting between the U.S., Ukraine and Russia since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The parties agreed to meet again in a week to continue negotiations. U.S. officials said discussions over security protocols are very advanced, adding there has not been a final framework agreed to on the fate of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, but said the sharing of the power produced by the plant will be a critical part of any agreement reached. The group of diplomats met Saturday in Abu Dhabi, where the U.S. delegation was led by envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. Both envoys met separately with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Russian President Vladimir Putin in recent days.

Big short squeeze pushing up natural gas futures prices even more. Futures prices for natural gas jumped 70% in the U.S. over a week of trading as forecasts for bitter cold grew worse, after many speculative traders had been betting prices would fall. Now those futures traders are feeling the brutality of a big “short squeeze,” or the forced buying back of previously sold, or short, positions. “The price spike is the most abrupt weekly increase on record in the U.S. and illustrates the country’s integration into the global gas market, with America’s emergence as the leading gas exporter making price volatility at home an international story. The surge in prices may squeeze smaller buyers in Asia, with liquefied natural gas tankers likely sailing to Europe instead, while countries like China and Japan may be less affected due to their strong inventories and alternative fuel choices,” said a Bloomberg report. Months of mild weather lulled U.S. and European gas traders into believing winter would bring more of the same — not the brutal freeze gripping much of America. “Their bad bet is now reverberating around the world,” said Bloomberg. “Nor is it certain that the worst of the run-up is over. Temperatures in gas-producing parts of the U.S. could drop low enough in coming days to freeze pipelines — potentially choking off supplies just as demand for the fuel soars.  “Everyone’s in panic mode right now,” said Paul Phillips, senior strategist for Uplift Energy Strategy, a Denver, Colorado-based gas trading firm. “This was a case of markets overextending in terms of positioning,” said Udayan Bhattacharya, chief trader at Global Risk Management and as reported by Bloomberg. Combine those positions with some bad weather and political tension, he said, and “you get a violent, short covering situation like we saw the last few days.”

The key outside markets today see crude oil prices near steady and trading around $61.00 a barrel. The U.S. dollar index is sharply down and hit a four-month low, while the U.S. 10-year Treasury note yield is presently 4.207%.

Note: The gold market operates through two primary pricing mechanisms. The first is the spot market, which quotes prices for on-the-spot purchase and immediate delivery. The second is the futures market, which sets prices for delivery at a future date. Due to year-end positioning market liquidity, the December gold futures contract is currently the most actively traded on the CME.

Technically, February gold futures bulls’ next upside price objective is to produce a close above solid resistance at $5,250.00. Bears’ next near-term downside price objective is pushing futures prices below solid technical support at $4,750.00. First resistance is seen at the overnight record high of $5,107.90 and then at $5,200.00. First support is seen at $5,000.00 and then at $4,950.00. Wyckoff’s Market Rating: 10.0.

March silver futures bulls have the strong chart advantage and their next upside price objective is closing prices above solid technical resistance at $125.00. The next downside price objective for the bears is closing prices below solid support at $100.00. First resistance is seen at the overnight record high of $110.92 and then at $112.00. Next support is seen at $107.50 and then at $105.00.
Posted by:

Jack Dempsey, President

401 Gold Consultants LLC

jdemp2003@gmail.com