Gold Closes Down 0.5% at $4,175.80 but Holds Above This Morning’s Low
Gold’s Sunday-night run to $4,217 did not last, and the metal finished Monday lower. After the open it stayed in a narrow $17 range and never returned to this morning’s $4,155 low, even as a Fed official argued for tighter policy. Here’s how metals closed, the levels in play, and what’s next before Wednesday’s inflation report.
For general information only, not investment advice. Ausecure is a precious-metals dealer and sells the products discussed.
The short version
- How gold closed today: $4,175.80 an ounce (Ausecure’s ask at the 5:00 PM ET close), down $22.70 (0.5%) from Friday’s close of $4,198.50 and up $7.20 from our 9:02 AM ET price. Spot’s range since Sunday evening was $4,154.73 to $4,217.40.
- Silver price today: $60.44, down $0.51 (0.8%). The gold/silver ratio rose to about 69.1, so silver lagged gold.
- After the open: gold traded between $4,158.84 and $4,175.59 and made no 15-minute close below $4,155. The dollar’s rise more than explains the day’s drop.
- The Fed: Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack said she prefers smaller rate changes made relatively quickly. CME FedWatch shows a 20.5% chance of a hike on Oct 28 as of 6:09 PM ET, up from 19.4% this morning.
Why did gold fall today, and why did it stop?
Gold’s biggest moves came before the U.S. open. In thin Sunday-evening trading it rose to $4,217.40, above the $4,208 level that had capped it last week. By Monday morning that move had reversed as oil rose and the dollar firmed, and gold fell to $4,154.73 at 8:30 AM ET, as we covered in our pre-market note.
From there the selling stopped. Gold spent the U.S. session between $4,158.84 (10:15 AM ET) and $4,175.59, a range of about $17. It did not get back to this morning’s low, and the $4,143–$4,150 area we flagged as support was never tested. It finished near the top of that afternoon range.
Monday was Columbus Day. The U.S. bond market was closed, so there were no Treasury yield moves to drive gold, and trading volume thinned out through the afternoon.
Gold spot (XAU/USD), past two weeks
What did the Fed’s Hammack say?
Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack spoke at midday (scheduled for 12:10 PM ET, 11:10 AM CT). She said she prefers that the Fed make smaller rate changes but act relatively quickly, warned of a risk that an inflationary mindset becomes ingrained, and put trend inflation in the mid-to-high 2% range, according to FXStreet’s summary of her remarks.
Gold barely reacted. It slipped to $4,160.11 by 12:45 PM ET, just above its earlier session low, then rose to $4,172.90 by 2:15 PM ET. Rate-futures traders did move: CME FedWatch put the chance of no change on Oct 28 at 79.5% and a hike at 20.5% as of 6:09 PM ET (5:09 PM CT), compared with 82.3% and 17.7% at Friday’s close.
How much of today’s drop was the dollar?
All of it, by our estimate. The U.S. dollar index rose 0.34% to 102.58. Based on how gold has moved against the dollar over this window, that rise points to a gold drop of about 0.7%. Gold’s actual drop on spot was 0.55%, so gold did slightly better than the dollar alone would suggest.
The afternoon showed the same pattern. Since this morning’s pull the dollar rose another 0.16%, yet gold edged up 0.15%. Gold measured against a basket of major currencies (gold × DXY) was 0.3% higher than at 8:45 AM ET.
Gold vs. the U.S. dollar, rebased to 100
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Oil, Saudi Arabia and the rest of the day’s news
- Oil: Brent crude rose to about $107.33 a barrel by 2:15 PM ET, then eased to $105.89 by 5:00 PM ET, still up about 1.3% from Friday’s last price. Oilprice.com tied the rise to a Houthi strike on Riyadh’s international airport on Saturday, more attacks on Saudi Arabia on Sunday, and two tankers struck, one near Oman and one in the Strait of Hormuz.
- Offsetting news: the same report said those attacks outweighed President Trump’s announcements on extra Russian diesel supply and a Russia-Ukraine energy ceasefire.
- Why oil matters for gold right now: higher oil has lifted inflation worries and rate-hike bets, which has weighed on gold. This morning’s slide lined up with oil’s climb; gold steadied this afternoon as oil eased.
Silver price today: down 0.8%, lagging gold
Silver ended at $60.44 on our ask, down $0.51. On spot it fell from $61.46 on Sunday evening to $60.14 at 3:00 PM ET, then closed near $60.32. It did not make a 15-minute close above $60.73 after this morning. The gold/silver ratio rose to about 69.2 on spot, near the top of its two-week range (86th percentile).
Mining shares were soft too. Gold miners slipped 0.2% against gold (GDX/GLD), and junior silver miners fell 0.6% against silver (SILJ/SLV). Weaker silver and weaker miners on a down day for gold mean the rest of the metals complex did not show strength.
Gold/silver ratio, past two weeks
Gold and silver price levels after the close
| Level | Gold | Silver | What happened today |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday-night high | $4,217.40 | $61.46 | Set in thin trading; reversed by morning |
| Failed breakout / lost level | $4,208 | $60.73 | Gold’s Sunday-night closes above it did not hold; silver lost $60.73 this morning and made no close back above it |
| Friday’s U.S.-session low | $4,168.60 | $60.27 | Both metals traded on both sides of it this afternoon and closed above it |
| Day’s low | $4,154.73 | $60.14 | Gold’s low set at 8:30 AM ET and not revisited; silver’s set at 3:00 PM ET |
| Next support | $4,143–$4,150 | $60.11 | Not tested today (silver’s $60.11 was Friday’s early low) |
Gold covered about $63 from high to low since Sunday evening. Over the past few weeks the typical day covered about $66, and 80% of days stayed inside $80, so this was a normal-size day. Nearly all of the range came before the U.S. open.
What’s next: Tuesday through Thursday
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See the latest weekly emailThis weekAusecure closing ask
| Day | Gold | Change | Silver | Silver change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MonOct 12 | $4,175.80 | −0.5% | $60.44 | −0.8% |
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What today means if you buy physical gold or silver
Gold gave back its Sunday-night gain but held a narrow range during U.S. hours, and Wednesday’s CPI report could change that. For buyers of coins and bars, the practical questions are what you pay over spot and when your price is set:
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Silver spot (XAG/USD), past two weeks
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Frequently asked questions
How did gold close today?
Gold closed Oct 12, 2026 at $4,175.80 an ounce on Ausecure’s ask at 5:00 PM ET, down $22.70 (0.5%) from Friday’s $4,198.50. Spot ranged from $4,154.73 to $4,217.40 since Sunday evening.
Why is gold down today?
Mostly the dollar. The dollar index rose 0.34%, which by our estimate accounts for more than gold’s 0.55% drop on spot. Rising oil after attacks on Saudi Arabia and tankers near Hormuz added pressure this morning. Gold’s Sunday-night run above $4,208 did not hold.
How did gold react to Fed official Hammack’s comments?
Very little. Gold traded between about $4,160 and $4,173 around her midday remarks and held above this morning’s $4,154.73 low. Rate futures moved more: CME FedWatch put hike odds for Oct 28 at 20.5% at 6:09 PM ET, up from 19.4% this morning and 17.7% at Friday’s close.
What is the silver price today?
Silver closed Oct 12, 2026 at $60.44 on Ausecure’s ask, down $0.51 (0.8%) from Friday. Its spot low was $60.14 at 3:00 PM ET, and the gold/silver ratio rose to about 69.1.
Is a down day before a CPI report a good time to buy gold?
We don’t give investment advice, and no one can reliably call short-term lows, especially two days before an inflation report that could move prices either way. Some buyers add on down days; 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 6:25 PM ET on Oct 12, 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 (closing ask); CME FedWatch; remarks by Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack as reported by FXStreet; Oilprice.com; Forex Factory economic calendar; OANDA, TVC (incl. Brent) and BATS 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.
