---
title: "The largest drop in nearly two years! Gold prices hit hard, what happened?"
type: "News"
locale: "en"
url: "https://longbridge.com/en/news/202545550.md"
description: "Gold prices experienced the largest drop in nearly two years under the dual pressure of easing tensions in the Middle East and profit-taking by investors. Gold fell by as much as 2.8%, dropping from last Friday's record high close. The cooling of the situation in the Middle East has reduced safe-haven demand, and Iran's attack on Israel is also not expected to trigger a full-scale war. In addition, profit-taking by investors has also put pressure on the gold price. Gold has risen by over 50% in the past two years, with a recent surge of nearly 20%. UBS predicts that unless geopolitical risks escalate, gold may enter a period of consolidation"
datetime: "2024-04-23T00:58:33.000Z"
locales:
  - [zh-CN](https://longbridge.com/zh-CN/news/202545550.md)
  - [en](https://longbridge.com/en/news/202545550.md)
  - [zh-HK](https://longbridge.com/zh-HK/news/202545550.md)
---

> Supported Languages: [简体中文](https://longbridge.com/zh-CN/news/202545550.md) | [繁體中文](https://longbridge.com/zh-HK/news/202545550.md)


# The largest drop in nearly two years! Gold prices hit hard, what happened?

As the tension in the Middle East eases and the demand for safe-haven assets weakens, gold has experienced a rare sharp decline, marking the largest intraday drop in nearly two years.

On Monday, gold opened significantly lower with spot gold falling by 2.8% to a low of $2324.96 per ounce, with an intraday drop of nearly $70 per ounce, **falling from the record high set last Friday and marking the largest intraday drop since June 2022.**

COMEX June gold futures closed down 2.79% at $2346.4 per ounce, hitting the lowest closing level since April 5 and marking the largest daily drop in the main contract since February 3, 2023.

Last week, concerns about a full-scale war breaking out in the Middle East due to the conflict between Israel and Iran have eased, leading to a reduction in tension this week.

According to media reports, Nasser Kanaani, the spokesperson for the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated in Tehran on Monday that Israel's attacks were insignificant and of no military value, and that Israel has already received the necessary response.

Quoting Nicholas Frappell, Global General Manager of the Sydney-based ABC Refinery, the media reported that **the Iranian government's nonchalant response to Israel and the implied lack of retaliation have reduced the risk premium in the gold market.**

In a report released on Monday, Bank of America also stated that the direct impact of the tension between the Middle East on the U.S. stock market and other asset classes may not be as direct as it seemed in the past two weeks.

**After a historic surge in recent times, profit-taking by investors has also put pressure on the gold price.** Since February 2020, the price of gold has risen by over 50%, with an increase of nearly 20% in just the past two months.

According to a report released by UBS last week, although some investors are concerned that the profit-taking period may be premature, given the significant rise in gold prices, market participants may ultimately lean towards selling some of their positions to lock in profits. UBS expects that unless geopolitical risks escalate, gold may enter a consolidation phase.

Currently, institutional views on the future of gold remain optimistic, with investment banks including Goldman Sachs continuously raising their target prices for gold.

**UBS believes that the healthy pullback in gold prices indicates that the market is able to form a support base at higher levels. This will help strengthen investors' confidence in the long-term bull market for gold.**

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