An employee handles one kilogram gold bullions at the YLG Bullion International Co. headquarters in Bangkok, Thailand, Dec. 22, 2023.
Chalinee Thirasupa | Bloomberg | Getty Images
President Donald Trump said Monday that gold will not face tariffs, knocking down a ruling by U.S. customs officials that bars of the precious metal imported from Switzerland would face duties.
“Gold will not be Tariffed!” Trump said in a Truth Social post. Gold futures closed 2.48% lower at $3,404.70 per ounce after the announcement.
The precious metal hit a record high Friday, after U.S. Customs and Border Protection ruled that 1 kilogram and 100 ounce gold cast bars from Switzerland were subject to Trump’s 39% tariffs on imports from the country.
Gold bars of this type are used to back contracts on The Commodity Exchange or COMEX, the main futures market for gold, silver and other metals.
The ruling would have applied not just to Switzerland but to any country exporting these types of gold bars to the U.S., according to the Swiss Precious Metals Association. In other words, gold bars would have been subject to the prevailing U.S. tariff rate against the country of origin.
The Swiss Precious Metals Association warned Friday that the customs ruling “may negatively impact the international flow of physical gold.”
Trump imposed what he has called reciprocal tariffs against dozens of U.S. trade partners on Aug. 7.
