Trade Optimism Boosts Dollar and Pressures Gold Despite Ongoing Geopolitical Conflicts

Daily News Nuggets | Today’s top stories for gold and silver investors  January 12th, 2026  A Rare Challenge to Fed Independence Shakes Markets  In an unusually direct escalation, the Justice Department under President Trump has served subpoenas on the Federal Reserve and threatened criminal charges tied to Chair Jerome Powell’s congressional testimony — a move widely viewed as a politicized use of prosecutorial power against an independent central bank.  Fed leadership pushed back immediately, warning that the action undermines the Fed’s independence. Markets reacted just as fast. Stocks wavered, the dollar softened, and safe-haven assets like gold moved higher as investors priced in rising institutional risk.  The concern goes

U.S. job growth is fading, housing starts have slumped to pandemic-era lows, and China’s economy remains under pressure. As growth doubts spread globally, gold is holding firm — supported by shifting Fed expectations and steady central bank demand.

Gold pulled back as commodity index rebalancing and a stronger dollar pressured prices ahead of U.S. jobs data. But central bank buying, geopolitical risk, and shifting reserve strategies suggest markets may be underestimating gold’s longer-term support.