Gold rose to a record high, after advancing by almost 1% in the previous session, as the opening salvos of the US-China trade war stoked haven demand.

Bullion reached an all-time peak of $2,849.05 an ounce on Wednesday. That came after President Donald Trump hit Chinese imports with a 10% tariff the day before, prompting a swift but more targeted retaliation from Beijing. 

The response from China was relatively muted compared to Trump's first term, when Beijing hit back with tariffs that were almost on par with the US, but there's still plenty of trepidation about the impact on the world's two biggest economies. Markets are also waiting to see if there are any ripple effects for US monetary policy if tariffs reignite inflation.

Adding to the uncertain outlook, Trump proposed that the US take over the Gaza Strip and assume responsibility for reconstructing the war-torn territory, during a press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The precious metal should benefit from increasing unease about what lies ahead, although may lose some of its luster if interest rates stay high.

A gauge of the dollar fell, extended losses following a US jobs report on Tuesday that pointed to a gradual slowdown in the labor market. A weaker greenback makes commodities like gold cheaper for most buyers.

"Who doesn't like a safe-haven in this scenario?," said Charu Chanana, a strategist at Saxo Capital Markets Pte.. "No good news on US-China talks and more geopolitical angst with the Gaza news would continue to provide a further boost to gold, irrespective of where the US dollar goes."

Spot gold rose 0.1% to $2,844.82 an ounce as of 9:17 a.m. in Singapore. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was down 0.1%, after a 0.7% loss on Tuesday. Silver and palladium dipped, while platinum edged higher.

Source : Bloomberg