On Monday, the gold price hit its highest level in nearly a week. The slight decline in the US dollar and the escalation of tensions in the Middle East have reinforced the attractiveness of gold as a safe haven.

At 03:35 GMT, spot gold was up 0.4% to $2,021.09 per ounce, reaching the highest level since February 13. U.S. gold futures also rose by 0.4% to $2,032.40 per ounce. Yeap Jun Rong, market strategist at IG, said that “given recent geopolitical developments that call for an extension of tensions, the yellow metal is finding renewed traction on safe haven flows

Silver fell 1.2% to $23.12 per ounce, spot platinum fell 0.4% to $902.37, while palladium rose 0.9% to $958.66 per ounce.