Gold Rises on Paused Iran Strikes, but Heads for Weekly Loss

Trump's 10-day pause on Iran energy strikes pulled some geopolitical premium out of gold, which explains the weekly decline despite today's modest bounce. This is classic risk-off, risk-on whipsaw that creates noise around the real fundamentals. COMEX registered gold inventories remain tight at multi-year lows while central banks continue accumulating at record pace. The weekly loss means nothing when you zoom out to the bigger picture. Physical premiums haven't budged despite paper price volatility, telling you where real demand sits. Any pullback from these levels gets absorbed quickly by stackers who understand that geopolitical tensions are just one driver in a much larger monetary shift happening globally.