- - Gold, silver surge as 'assault on Fed' sparks rush to precious metals

Ines FerréJanuary 12, 2026 at 10:36 PM

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Gold (GC=F) and silver (SI=F) surged to all-time intraday highs on Monday after Fed Chair Jerome Powell warned that “threats and ongoing pressure” from the Trump administration are jeopardizing the central bank’s independence.

Gold futures climbed 2% to rise above $4,600 per troy ounce, while silver rose above $84 per ounce following Powell’s video released on Sunday, in which he said a subpoena from the Department of Justice over his testimony about headquarters renovations comes amid a “broader context of the administration's threats and ongoing pressure."

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A move lower in the US dollar (DX-Y.NYB) and equities also helped lift gold, silver, platinum (PL=F), and palladium (PA=F), among other metals.

“If you're wondering why people are buying precious metals at all-time highs, the assault on the Fed is a reminder,” Robin Brooks, a senior fellow in the global economy and development program at the Brookings Institution, said on X on Monday morning.

“That's a deeply destabilizing event that's feeding safe haven demand," he added.

Precious metals are coming off a week of price gains after the United States captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, made threats to take Greenland through negotiation or "the hard way," and escalated tensions with Iran.

"Gold is no longer moving solely as a hedge against inflation or dollar weakness, but increasingly as protection against geopolitical disorder and the reshaping of global power dynamics,” Rania Gule, senior market analyst at XS.com, said on Monday.

Gold and silver entered 2026 with gains, building on their historic rally last year.

Foreign central banks have been purchasing gold at a record clip in recent years, recently breaching a new threshold by holding more bullion than US Treasurys for the first time since 1996.

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Meanwhile, silver outperformed gold last year and into 2026. China restricted silver exports at the start of this year, and analysts have pointed to a deficit, given the metal’s industrial uses amid an artificial intelligence and reshoring boom.

“But care must be taken if chasing prices higher as the risks of a sharp correction only increase as silver makes fresh highs,” said David Morrison, senior market analyst at Trade Nation.

Gold, silver jumped to new highs after Fed Chair Jerome Powell warned that “threats and ongoing pressure” from the Trump administration are jeopardizing the central bank’s independence. REUTERS/Angelika Warmuth/File Photo (Reuters / Reuters)

Ines Ferre is a senior business reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on X at @ines_ferre.

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