Topline
Gold and silver plunged following a strong jobs report Friday, leaving both precious metals hovering near their lowest prices of the year to date, with analysts citing expectations the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates high and a strengthening dollar.
Gold and silver hit their lowest levels since March following strong jobs data. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader, File)
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Key Facts
The price of gold is $4,388.00 as of 11 a.m. EST Friday, down more than 2.5% but slightly higher than an intraday low of $4,369.40.
Silver tumbled more than 6% to $69.44 as of 11 a.m. EST, but it plunged even further to $68.92 earlier in the day.
Silver slipped under $69 for the first time since its price plunged in late March, while the cost of gold also fell to its lowest level in more than two months.
The prices plunged within hours of the Bureau of Labor Statistics releasing stronger-than-expected jobs data, reporting the United States added 172,000 nonfarm jobs in May and the unemployment rate remained at 4.3%.
Bart Melek, global head of commodity strategy at TD Securities, told Reuters the strong jobs data makes it “quite unlikely that the Fed is in any mood whatsoever to lower rates,” noting the “implication for gold here is that the cost of carry is getting quite high.”
Elias Haddad of Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. also attributed the plunging metals prices to a “firmer dollar,” as the U.S. dollar index is up 0.42% as of 11 a.m. EST.
gold and silver hit lowest levels since march
The last time gold and silver shed this much value was in late March, when gold hit a low around $4,400 and silver fell to as low as $67. Analysts blamed that price crash on mixed signals about Iran peace talks from both Iranian and American leadership. At the time, President Donald Trump claimed Iran was “begging” to make a deal to end the war, which has largely caused metals prices to decline, while Iran rejected a U.S. peace proposal. The crash was a stark reversal from the highs gold and silver hit earlier in the month: Gold cost above $5,200 an ounce in early March, while silver’s price soared above $90. Before the March crash, gold and silver prices haven’t been this low since the beginning of January.
tangent
Friday morning’s jobs report was stronger than expected. The addition of 172,000 nonfarm jobs in May far surpassed consensus analyst estimates of 105,000 new jobs, according to FactSet. The leisure and hospitality industries added the most jobs, totaling 70,000, followed by government jobs adding 55,000 and healthcare adding 35,000. Trump praised the “great Jobs Report” in a post on Truth Social Friday morning, saying “stocks should go up, not down. That’s the way it was for 200 years. Growth does not mean inflation!”
key background
Gold and silver are still up significantly year-over-year after both metals embarked on a months-long, record-shattering price surge throughout late 2025 and early 2026. Both metals hit their highest marks, over $5,600 for gold and $120 for silver, at the end of January. They were buoyed by factors including interest rate cuts, international turmoil, Trump’s tariffs and increasing demand for metals by the booming technology industry. Prices came crashing down in late January shortly after Trump named Kevin Warsh as his pick to lead the Federal Reserve, as Warsh was seen as less likely to slash interest rates as other presumed candidates. Metals prices have generally declined throughout the Iran war, as gold and silver tend to move inversely with oil, whose price has surged throughout the conflict.
further reading
U.S. Job Market Smashed Expectations In May—But Fewer Americans Were Working (Forbes)