📝 Executive Summary
Gold prices held their losses as fresh clashes between the United States and Iran intensified fears of supply-driven inflation, pushing traders to reassess the outlook for Federal Reserve policy. The geopolitical flare-up threatens to lift energy costs, which could feed into broader price pressures and force the central bank to keep interest rates higher for longer. That environment typically diminishes the appeal of non-yielding assets like gold, even as geopolitical turmoil would normally spur safe-haven buying.