Gold Price Today: Gold Falls 1.6% to $4,078 as Stocks Slide and a Key Level Breaks

Update, 8:56 AM ET: gold has recovered part of the drop since this note’s 8:34 AM ET prices. Our ask is now $4,088.90, down $56.40 (1.36%) from Wednesday’s close, and silver is $56.03, down $2.07 (3.56%). U.S. initial jobless claims fell to 194,000 last week, below the 200,000 forecast, according to the Labor Department. The pre-market figures below are as of 8:34 AM ET. Tonight’s market close note will cover the full U.S. session.

This pre-market note uses Ausecure prices as of 8:34 AM ET on Oct 22, 2026. For how gold and silver finished Wednesday, read our market close note from last night.

Why is gold down today?

Gold fell in two bursts of selling. The first came late Wednesday in a quiet Asian session. Between 11:00 and 11:30 PM ET spot fell about $22 as it slid into $4,105, a level it had held on closing prices for two sessions, and trading in gold futures ran at about four times its pace earlier in the hour. At 11:15 PM ET gold closed a 15-minute bar below $4,105, and selling picked up once the level gave way, a common pattern when many traders keep sell orders just below a well-watched price. Stocks, oil and the dollar were quiet in that half hour. A brief drop to $4,066.80 at 1:45 AM ET was bought back within 15 minutes.

The second burst came as European trading got going. From 6:45 to 7:45 AM ET gold fell about $28 to $4,057.55, its lowest price in our data going back to late September and below the Oct 7 low of $4,066.54. A news agency report put it at the lowest since early August. In the same hour the dollar index rose about 0.2% as the euro slipped toward $1.12, weighed down by France’s bond sell-off (the French 10-year yield went above 5% this week for the first time since 2002), and U.S. stock futures eased. The firmer dollar explains about a third of that leg.

War news mattered less than many reports suggest. Gold eased about $12 in the hour after The New York Times reported at 8:03 PM ET that U.S. and Israeli military planners have drawn up plans for renewed strikes on Iran after the Nov 3 midterms; no strikes have been approved. But while Brent crude climbed from about $110.50 to $112.50 between 12:45 and 4:45 AM ET, gold stayed between roughly $4,080 and $4,100, and it did not react when Reuters reported at 6:25 AM ET, citing sources, that Saudi Aramco had told staff to leave its Dhahran headquarters. Many reports blamed oil-driven bets on a Fed rate hike, but fed funds futures trimmed those odds overnight and Treasury yields fell. Gold traded with falling stock markets instead of acting as a safe haven: Hong Kong’s Hang Seng lost 3.03% and Japan’s Nikkei 2.65%, and Nasdaq 100 futures were down 1.61% at 8:15 AM ET. Oil still matters as the backdrop: over the past three weeks gold has tended to dip when Brent jumps, as it did on Wednesday afternoon, and since early October Brent is up about 12% while gold is down about 1.6%.

The Gulf backdrop stays tense. On Wednesday, Saudi Arabia’s Energy Ministry said a drone aimed at a facility at the Shaybah oil field was intercepted and its debris killed two workers, and Saudi Arabia’s civil aviation authority said an attack on Dammam’s airport that evening killed two people. The U.S. State Department ordered non-emergency staff and their families to leave Saudi Arabia. No loss of oil output has been reported.

Data this morning: U.S. initial jobless claims fell to 194,000 in the week to Oct 17, below the 200,000 forecast, and the prior week was revised up to 200,000, according to the Labor Department. Continuing claims rose to 1.728 million. Gold showed no clear reaction: futures were little changed in the first minutes after the 8:30 AM ET release, then rose about $13 over the next 20 minutes with no matching move in the dollar or Treasury yields.

Gold spot (XAU/USD), past two weeks

How much was the dollar?

Almost none of it. The U.S. Dollar Index is at 101.78, up 0.08% since Wednesday afternoon, and it explains only about a tenth of a percent of gold’s fall. The dollar was weaker during the first burst of selling and firmer, on a softer euro, during the second. Measured in other currencies, gold fell just as much. Over the past two weeks gold is down about 1.1% and the dollar is down about 0.6%.

Yields fell overnight. The 10-year Treasury yield is 5.04% and the 30-year is 5.35%, down about 0.08 and 0.06 percentage point since Wednesday afternoon, and the 2-year is 4.73%, down about 0.08. Mortgage rates remain high: the average 30-year fixed rate was 7.40% in Freddie Mac’s weekly survey (Oct 15), unchanged from a week earlier, and the 15-year was 6.71%. The new survey is out today at 12:00 PM ET.

Gold vs. the U.S. dollar, % change over two weeks

Silver price today: down almost 4%

Silver is at $55.98 on our ask, down $2.12 from Wednesday’s $58.10. Spot silver started sliding earlier than gold, closing below Wednesday’s low of $56.94 at 10:00 PM ET, and reached $55.66 at 7:15 AM ET. That is still above its Oct 14 low of $55.40.

The gold/silver ratio (how many ounces of silver one ounce of gold buys) is 72.8, up from 71.4 at Wednesday’s close and near the top of its range over the past month. A rising ratio means silver is weaker than gold, as it often is when metals sell off.

Gold/silver ratio, past two weeks

Gold and silver price levels we’re watching

Gold’s overnight range was about $83, above the typical day of about $58 over the past 26 sessions and wider than four days in five. It had spent four sessions between roughly $4,105 and $4,156 before last night.

What the Fed is expected to do

Fed funds futures imply about 11% odds (roughly 1 in 9) that the Fed raises rates by a quarter point at its October 27–28 meeting, and about 89% that it holds at 3.75%–4.00%, as of 8:25 AM ET. At Wednesday’s close the hike odds were about 13%. Futures still price at least one hike by the December 9 meeting as likely, about 85%, down from about 89%.

The 10-year TIPS yield, a common measure of real interest rates, was 2.76% at Wednesday’s close, down 0.01 percentage point on the day, according to the U.S. Treasury. Lower real rates reduce the cost of holding a metal that pays no interest; today’s figures come out after the close. The Fed is in its quiet period before the meeting; no Fed officials spoke overnight and none are scheduled today. The decision is due Wednesday, Oct 28, at 2:00 PM ET.

Economic calendar: what’s next for gold

What today’s move means if you buy physical gold or silver

Gold is about $68 below Wednesday’s close on our ask and silver about $2.12 lower, so the same budget buys more metal than it did yesterday. A few practical points:

• Your price is confirmed when you order. Our prices follow the live market, and on a fast morning like this one they can move several dollars between quotes. The price you lock in is the one on screen when you place the order.
• Compare the premium over spot. Most products on our site show their “% over spot” under the price, so you can compare a coin with a bar on equal terms.
• Listed price or card price. Wire, paper check and crypto via Uphold pay the listed price. Credit or debit card, Apple Pay and Google Pay pay the card price. Domestic orders paid by wire qualify for free insured shipping.
• Buying for retirement? See which coins and bars meet the fineness rules on our IRA-eligible metals page.
• Selling? We make two-way markets. Call the desk at 1-855-528-4653 for a live bid, or see how selling works.

Silver spot (XAG/USD), past two weeks

Frequently asked questions

What is the gold price today?

Before the New York open, Ausecure’s gold ask was $4,077.60 an ounce at 8:34 AM ET on Oct 22, 2026, down $67.70 (1.63%) from Wednesday’s closing ask of $4,145.30. Spot fell as low as $4,057.55 at 7:45 AM ET. At 8:56 AM ET our ask was $4,088.90, down $56.40 (1.36%). For the current bid and ask, see our live metal prices page.

Why did gold fall when yields and the dollar didn’t rise?

Gold fell in two bursts of selling, and neither came from rates or the dollar. The first, from 11:00 to 11:20 PM ET in a quiet Asian session, took gold toward $4,105, a level it had held for two days, on about four times normal trading volume; once it closed below that level, selling sped up. The second, from 6:45 to 7:45 AM ET, came as stock futures slipped and the dollar firmed against a euro hit by France’s bond sell-off. War news played a smaller part than reported: gold eased about $12 after The New York Times reported U.S.–Israeli strike plans at 8 PM ET, but held steady while Brent crude climbed overnight. Fed rate-hike odds actually fell, so oil-driven rate fears don’t explain it either.

Why did silver fall more than gold?

Silver started falling first, dropping below Wednesday’s low of $56.94 at 10:00 PM ET, an hour before gold broke its floor. It lost about 3.6% to gold’s 1.6%. Silver is a much smaller market, so the same wave of selling moves it further, and as an industrial metal it is hit harder when stocks and growth expectations fall, as they did in Asia overnight. It is still above its Oct 14 low of $55.40, while gold has broken its October low.

Did gold break support?

Yes, on closing prices. Gold had held $4,105 on 15-minute closes for two sessions. It closed below it at 11:15 PM ET Wednesday and has stayed below since, then fell under its Oct 7 low of $4,066.54. A sustained move back above $4,105 would undo that break.

Is a drop like this a good time to buy gold?

We don’t give investment advice, and no one can reliably call short-term lows. Gold is about 1.6% lower than yesterday and silver about 3.7% lower, and prices can keep falling after a break. Some buyers wait for prices to settle; others buy a fixed amount on a schedule so they don’t have to time the market, which our Auto-Buy program does automatically. Whatever you choose, compare the premium over spot and buy from a dealer that confirms your price when you order.

This note is general market commentary from the Ausecure trading desk, based on data available at 8:34 AM ET on Oct 22, 2026. It is for informational purposes only and is not investment, tax or financial advice, or a recommendation to buy or sell any product. Ausecure is a dealer in physical precious metals and earns revenue from the products discussed. Precious-metal prices can go down as well as up, and past performance does not guarantee future results. Consider your own circumstances, and speak with a qualified adviser if you need one, before you buy.

Sources: Ausecure live prices (ask; Wednesday closing ask); CBOT 30-day fed funds futures (Ausecure calculation); U.S. Treasury (daily yield curves); Freddie Mac (Primary Mortgage Market Survey); U.S. Department of Labor (weekly jobless claims); Saudi Ministry of Energy (Shaybah drone attack); Saudi General Authority of Civil Aviation (Dammam airport); U.S. Department of State (ordered departure); The New York Times (Iran strike-plans report); Reuters (Aramco Dhahran report; lowest since August); French government bond yields via CNBC and FXStreet; gold futures, currencies and Asian indexes via Yahoo Finance (delayed); Federal Reserve Board calendar; index data via Yahoo Finance (delayed); Forex Factory economic calendar; OANDA and TVC data via TradingView.

How this note is made: drafted with automated tools from Ausecure’s own prices and the market data listed above, then checked and approved by Ausecure before it was published.