By Danni Haizal Danial Donald
KUALA LUMPUR, March 19 (Bernama) -- Gold futures on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives ended lower on Friday, in line with the weaker US COMEX gold market.
SPI Asset Management managing partner Stephen Innes said that the United States Federal Reserve (Fed) has kept interest rates unchanged, in a target range of 3.5 per cent to 3.75 per cent, which has negatively impacted market sentiment.
“The hawkish Fed narrative is pressing down the bullion, with the market increasingly pushing rate cuts out toward 2027.
“If the price of Brent crude oil falls below US$90 per barrel, it could alleviate inflation pressures, prompting the Fed to respond more assertively and potentially reopen the upside for gold,” he told Bernama.
At the close, the spot-month March 2026 contract slipped to US$4,720.10 per troy ounce from US$5,003.50 on Wednesday, April 2026 fell to US$4,740.20 per troy ounce from US$5,022.90 yesterday, and May 2026 slid to US$4,760.4 per troy ounce from US$5,044.20 previously.
The June, August and September 2026 contracts also settled lower at US$4,794.30 per troy ounce compared with US$5,078.10 on Wednesday.
Trading volume grew to 34 lots from nine lots on Wednesday, while open interest was widened to 88 contracts from 62 contracts previously.
Physical gold was fixed at US$4,869.95 per troy ounce at the London Bullion Market Association afternoon fix on March 18, 2026.
-- BERNAMA
