Gold price today: Gold prices traded lower in the domestic futures market on Thursday (June 19) morning after the kept interest rates unchanged and offered no clarity on when rate cuts might begin. Around 2:05 PM, August 5 contracts traded 0.25 per cent down at ₹99,290 per 10 grams.
On expected lines, the US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) decided on 18 June 2025 to keep the benchmark interest rates unchanged at 4.25 per cent to 4.5 per cent.
The US Fed’s ‘dot plot’ chart projections show that key benchmark interest rates may fall by 50 basis points (bps) in 2025.
However, there are clouds of uncertainty over the path of interest rates as Fed Chair Jerome Powell said inflation may accelerate over the summer due to President Donald Trump’s tariff policies. Powell also cautioned that the Fed’s interest rate forecasts could change based on incoming data, especially on inflation.
The Fed’s hawkish tone added some strength to the US dollar; the dollar index inched up by 0.20 per cent, weighing on gold prices. When the dollar gets stronger, it makes gold expensive in other currencies and impacts its demand.
On the other hand, geopolitical tensions remain a key support for gold prices. Tensions between carry the risk of spiralling into a larger conflict.
On Wednesday, Trump said it was too late for Iran to negotiate. The US president also hinted at ‘something big’ next week.
Russia said it has been in contact with the US over the Middle East crisis and warned that Israeli strikes on Iran targeting nuclear sites have pushed the world ‘millimetres away from a catastrophe’.