Gold Ticks Up on Safe‑haven Bids; Markets Eye US-Iran Talks

Gold items are displayed at a jewelry shop in Hanoi, Vietnam, 26 February 2026.  EPA/LUONG THAI LINH
Gold items are displayed at a jewelry shop in Hanoi, Vietnam, 26 February 2026. EPA/LUONG THAI LINH
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Gold Ticks Up on Safe‑haven Bids; Markets Eye US-Iran Talks

Gold items are displayed at a jewelry shop in Hanoi, Vietnam, 26 February 2026.  EPA/LUONG THAI LINH
Gold items are displayed at a jewelry shop in Hanoi, Vietnam, 26 February 2026. EPA/LUONG THAI LINH

Gold prices edged up on Thursday as uncertainty over US tariff policy boosted the metal's safe-haven appeal, while investors awaited further details on US-Iran talks later in the day.

Spot gold was up 0.4% at $5,190.01 per ounce, as of 0816 GMT. Bullion had hit a more-than-three-week high on Tuesday.

US gold ‌futures for April ‌delivery were down 0.4% at $5,206.80, said Reuters.

The US dollar ‌eased, ⁠making dollar-denominated commodities more ⁠affordable for holders of other currencies.

"Iran-US persisting tensions and the uncertainty surrounding the global economy with (President Donald) Trump's tariffs are a bullish catalyst," said Carlo Alberto De Casa, external analyst at banking group Swissquote.

US envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner are due to meet an Iranian delegation for ⁠a third round of nuclear talks later in the ‌day in Geneva.

Trump briefly ‌laid out his case for a possible attack on Iran in his ‌State of the Union speech on Tuesday, saying ‌he would not allow a country he described as the world's biggest sponsor of terrorism to have a nuclear weapon.

Non-yielding gold is seen as a safe store of value during times of geopolitical and ‌economic uncertainty.

The US tariff rate for some countries will rise to 15% or higher from ⁠the newly ⁠imposed 10%, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said on Wednesday, without naming any specific trading partners or giving further details.

Gold prices scaled a record high of $5,594.82 on January 29 and were up 20% so far this year.

"The global gold rush does not seem to be over... Overall the sentiment remains positive with strong buys coming from Asia and from Central Banks," De Casa said.

On the data front, investors await the weekly US jobless claims data, due later in the day.

Spot silver fell 1.4% to $88.18 per ounce. Spot platinum added 0.9% to $2,308.11 per ounce, while palladium rose 0.3% to $1,800.14.



Struggling German Auto Supplier Continental to Sell Unit

FILE PHOTO: Flags with the logo of German tyremaker Continental flutter in Korbach, Germany, February 27, 2026. REUTERS/Fabian Bimmer/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Flags with the logo of German tyremaker Continental flutter in Korbach, Germany, February 27, 2026. REUTERS/Fabian Bimmer/File Photo
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Struggling German Auto Supplier Continental to Sell Unit

FILE PHOTO: Flags with the logo of German tyremaker Continental flutter in Korbach, Germany, February 27, 2026. REUTERS/Fabian Bimmer/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Flags with the logo of German tyremaker Continental flutter in Korbach, Germany, February 27, 2026. REUTERS/Fabian Bimmer/File Photo

German auto supplier Continental announced Saturday a four-billion-euro ($4.6-billion) deal to sell a division to a US investment group, the latest move in a major restructuring.

Continental, which has been struggling amid a crisis in the wider European auto sector, has been slimming down its operations to focus on its traditional tire business.

The group has signed an agreement to sell its ContiTech division, which makes plastic and rubber products for industrial clients, to private equity firm Lone Star Funds, according to a statement.

As well as the four-billion-euro sale price, Continental could receive up to 250 million euros more in coming years, depending on the business's performance.

"With the planned sale of ContiTech, Continental is completing its strategic realignment," AFP quoted it as saying.

The deal should be finalized by the end of 2026.

Some of the funds from the sale will be used to pay down debt, while around 2.5 billion euros will be distributed to shareholders, it added.

Continental last year spun off a division focused on car components including braking systems and sensors as a separate entity, called Aumovio.

The group has also announced thousands of job cuts in recent years, along with other auto suppliers and manufacturers in Germany.

The sector is facing fierce Chinese competition, weak demand in key markets and a troubled shift to electric vehicles.


Iraq, Türkiye Discuss Protocol to Keep Oil Exports Flowingy

Workers walk across pipelines at the Rumaila oil field in Basra, Iraq (Reuters)
Workers walk across pipelines at the Rumaila oil field in Basra, Iraq (Reuters)
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Iraq, Türkiye Discuss Protocol to Keep Oil Exports Flowingy

Workers walk across pipelines at the Rumaila oil field in Basra, Iraq (Reuters)
Workers walk across pipelines at the Rumaila oil field in Basra, Iraq (Reuters)

An Iraqi delegation visited Ankara to discuss the future of the Iraq-Türkiye pipeline agreement and energy cooperation, Iraq's foreign ministry said on Friday, adding that the two sides agreed to continue technical and legal talks on oil exports.

Iraq and Türkiye are expected to sign an executive protocol to ensure the continuation of Iraqi oil exports, including crude from Iraq's Kurdistan region, the ministry said.

The protocol would serve as a transitional step paving the way for a new agreement within one year of the expiry of the current deal, it added.


EU Trade with US Hits Record High Despite Tariff Tensions, Study Shows

Transshipment containers stacked at the Westhafen container terminal in Berlin, Germany, 01 July 2026. (EPA)
Transshipment containers stacked at the Westhafen container terminal in Berlin, Germany, 01 July 2026. (EPA)
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EU Trade with US Hits Record High Despite Tariff Tensions, Study Shows

Transshipment containers stacked at the Westhafen container terminal in Berlin, Germany, 01 July 2026. (EPA)
Transshipment containers stacked at the Westhafen container terminal in Berlin, Germany, 01 July 2026. (EPA)

Trade in goods between the European Union and the US reached a record €875 billion ($1.00 trillion) last year despite tariffs, but the figures mask significant economic damage, notably to Germany's auto sector, a study published on Friday found.

The research by the German Economic Institute, or IW, found a 7.7% rise in EU exports to the US to €580 billion, while US imports into the ‌EU climbed 2.2% ‌to €295 billion, pushing the EU's trade surplus to nearly €285 ‌billion.

The ⁠report attributed some ⁠of the increase to front-loading of exports ahead of tariffs that took effect in April and said European manufacturing had suffered.

"This first impression is misleading," said IW economist Samina Sultan.

EU car and parts exports to the US fell 20.4% in 2025, with Germany, which accounts for nearly two-thirds of EU auto exports to the United States, posting an 18.9% drop.

Ireland bucked ⁠the trend with a 52.7% surge in exports, driven by ‌tariff-exempt pharmaceutical and chemical products.

Most EU ‌member states recorded a decline in their goods exports to the US Apart ‌from Ireland only the Czech Republic (+5.1%), Italy (+7.2%), Denmark (+10.6%) and Finland (+10.8%) reported growth.

TRANSATLANTIC ‌SERVICES ALSO HIT A RECORD

Transatlantic services trade also hit a record €865 billion, though the EU ran a €178 billion deficit in that category.

"The transatlantic trade relationship is therefore much more balanced, when considering both goods and service trade," the study ‌said, contrasting the EU deficit in services and the surplus in goods.

Intellectual property fees - covering software licenses, patents and ⁠trademarks - accounted ⁠for more than 40% of EU service imports from the US, rising 13.7%.

Although the services sector has so far avoided the impact of US tariffs, the trade conflict has had a negative effect.

EU imports of travel services from the US fell by around 8%. "This decline is likely attributable to the reduced number of European tourists in the US last year," said co-author Galina Kolev-Schaefer.

The study said the Turnberry trade deal between the EU and the US asymmetrically benefited the US, but still it was a workable solution that should be honored by both sides.

"New tariff threats would cause new uncertainty that only hampers business activities on both sides of the Atlantic," the IW said.