Gold prices climbed nearly 2% on Wednesday as the dollar weakened after U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs on China took effect, with most traders flocking to safe-haven bullion for cover as global trade and recession jitters intensified.

Spot gold was up 1.9% at $3,038.54 an ounce, as of 0700 GMT. U.S. gold futures rose 2.2% to $3,056.60.

Trump ratcheted up duties on Chinese imports to 104% to counter Beijing's retaliatory tariffs, accusing Beijing of manipulating the yuan to offset the levies. China refused to bow to what it called a blackmail, vowing to "fight to the end".

Country-specific tariffs took effect at 12:01 a.m. Eastern Time (0401 GMT), as planned.

"The downward shift in the dollar on tariff worries effectively paved the way for gold to reclaim the $3000 level," KCM Trade chief market analyst Tim Waterer said.

"Due to global growth and inflation uncertainties, gold is still on track to pursue new all-time highs despite experiencing a few bumps in its progress over the last week."

Some gains in non-yielding bullion were limited by U.S. benchmark 10-year note yield hitting an over one-month high.

Gold hit a record high of $3,167.57 on April 3. Its excursion to these levels has drawn comparisons with the last time political and economic turmoil were the main drivers of record prices, back in 1980 during the Iranian Revolution.

Gold-backed exchange-traded funds registered the largest quarterly inflow in three years during January-March 2025, World Gold Council data showed.

Markets await minutes of the Federal Reserve's latest policy meeting, expected later in the day, and U.S. consumer price index on Thursday.

"The Fed's guidance will likely be the same, cautiously watching for inflationary resurgence over growth risks," said Kelvin Wong, senior market analyst, Asia Pacific at OANDA.

Source: Reuters