Precious metal futures experienced significant downward pressure overnight, with gold dropping to a seven-week low and silver falling nearly 5%, according to reporting from Mining.com.au. The selloff was driven by rising interest rates, with the 10-year Treasury yield reaching a 19-year high, which typically weighs on non-yielding assets like precious metals. In broader market movements, US equities declined with the S&P 500 down 0.78% and the Nasdaq down 0.9%.
Australian SPI futures remained flat during the session. In contrast to the weakness in equities and precious metals, Brent crude oil held around US$105 per barrel, maintaining elevated levels amid unresolved geopolitical tensions related to the Iran situation. The interest rate environment has emerged as a key headwind for precious metal investors.
Higher Treasury yields increase the opportunity cost of holding non-interest-bearing assets such as gold and silver, typically triggering fund outflows and reducing investor demand. Separately, semiconductor company NVIDIA announced a US$150 billion share buyback authorisation, described as the largest increase in share repurchase authorisation on record. Jensen Huang, co-founder and CEO of NVIDIA, attributed the company's growth to a significant platform shift toward artificial intelligence and accelerated computing, noting that the company's strong cash generation provides capacity to invest in advancing technologies while returning capital to shareholders.
Source: Mining.com.au, 29 September 2026
Source: mining.com.au