The escalation of the situation in the Middle East has driven safe-haven buying, and gold prices are just 50 dollars away from hitting a new high.

PANews, June 16 (Reuters) -- Gold prices headed for record highs on Monday as the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran prompted investors to turn to safe-haven assets. Gold rose as much as 0.6% to above $3,450 an ounce in early Asian trading on Monday, about $50 shy of its all-time high set in April. The sudden rise in geopolitical risks has added more impetus to the rise in gold prices, which have been largely driven by the threat to global economic growth posed by Trump's aggressive tariff agenda. Gold is up more than 30% in 2025, with central banks looking to diversify away from the dollar as another important driver.