I’ve been keeping a close eye on the gold market recently, and the gold price fluctuations here in Malaysia are indeed quite significant. Not long ago, international spot gold surged to $5,600 per ounce, hitting a new high in nearly 50 years, and the entire market has been talking about this super bull run.

I checked the quotes from local gold shops, and 999 fine gold has already moved close to the historical high level of around 750 to 800 Malaysian Ringgit per gram—compared with the beginning of the year, it has risen quite a lot. Today, gold prices are trading in a range of $5,190 to $5,250. Supported by risk-aversion sentiment, the long-bias setup remains fairly clear. This rapid rise has also led gold shops to diverge, with some investors taking profits at high levels, while others continue to buy the dip for hedging.

If you want to trade gold, international spot gold XAUUSD is basically traded 24 hours a day, operating nearly all day from Monday to Friday, with only a settlement and market closure break from 6 to 7 a.m. Malaysia’s local futures contract, FGLD, has relatively fixed trading times: the morning session is from 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., the afternoon is from 2:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., and the most active period is from 9:00 p.m. to 2:30 a.m., which aligns with the New York market.

At present, geopolitical conditions are still the main factor affecting gold prices. How the progress of the US-Iran negotiations goes, and how non-farm data performs—these will all be directly reflected in today’s gold prices and subsequent trends. Malaysian investors should keep an eye on the possibility that local premiums may further widen, and it’s recommended to monitor market developments more closely before making decisions.