Gold prices edged higher in Asian trade on Tuesday, staying below recent record highs as concerns eased over the severity of U.S. President Donald Trump's planned trade tariffs.

However, demand for the safe-haven asset remained relatively high amid uncertainty over what tariffs will be imposed by Trump's April 2 deadline. Investors are also cautious ahead of a series of key economic readings this week.

Gold and other precious metals pulled back from recent peaks this week, as risk appetite improved on reports that Trump's tariffs would not be as severe as feared. However, a weaker dollar limited bigger losses in the metals market, keeping it near recent highs.

Spot gold rose 0.1% to $3,015.51 an ounce, while May gold futures rose 0.1% to $3,048.05 an ounce by 00:59 ET (04:59 GMT). Gold prices fall from record highs as Trump tariff fears ease

Spot gold prices - which reflect short-term demand for physical bullion - fell sharply from a record high of $3,057.51/oz hit last week.

The lower gold prices were driven mainly by improved risk appetite, with Wall Street also recovering sharply from recent lows this week.

Traders were seen increasing bets that Trump's April 2 tariffs would not cover key sectors such as semiconductors, autos and pharmaceuticals. Trump's retaliatory tariffs are also expected to apply to a select group of about 15 countries, limiting their overall impact.

But the impact and scope of Trump's policies remain uncertain, which has led markets to gravitate towards safe-haven assets. Gold is still trading above the coveted $3,000/oz level, which it hit in early March.

The notion helped the yellow metal post some gains on Tuesday. Other precious metals also rose, with silver futures up 0.7% to $33.673 an ounce, while platinum futures were steady at $967.10 an ounce.

Among industrial metals, benchmark copper futures on the London Metal Exchange rose 0.4% to $9,989.60 an ounce, while May copper futures jumped 0.9% to $5.1280 a pound.(Newsmaker23)

Source: Investing.com