Gold prices surged to within about $10 of their record high early in the week as investors sought shelter from an escalating air war between Israel and Iran. Spot bullion touched roughly $3,386 an ounce on 16 June, extending the 2025 rally fed by persistent geopolitical risk and expectations that major central banks will soon ease policy. Safe-haven demand also lifted the U.S. dollar, which booked a weekly gain of around 0.6%, while the Japanese yen firmed after the Bank of Japan left policy unchanged. Equities vacillated: the S&P 500 slipped 0.15% over the period, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.02%, and the Nasdaq Composite edged up 0.21%. Commodity markets reversed course late in the week after President Donald Trump said he would take two more weeks to decide whether Washington will join Israel’s strikes, signalling a preference for negotiations. Brent crude, which had jumped nearly 3% after Israel hit Iranian nuclear sites, fell 2.3% on Friday to about $77 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate settled at $74.93 for the expiring July contract and $73.84 for August delivery. Gold eased alongside oil, with futures closing at $3,385.70 an ounce on 20 June, down 0.7% on the day and leaving the metal marginally lower for the week. Analysts said the pullback reflected reduced fears of an imminent U.S. intervention as well as uncertainty over the Federal Reserve’s next policy move after Chair Jerome Powell warned of ‘meaningful’ inflation pressures. Market attention now turns to the Fed’s late-July meeting and Trump’s self-imposed two-week deadline, events that could redraw expectations for energy supply, inflation and the global rate-cutting cycle.