International gold prices record largest single-week decline in 43 years, institutions signal "gold bull market not over"

Why is AI · Gold increasingly resembling a risk asset?

【Global Network Finance Report】This week, international gold prices experienced an epic crash, with spot gold falling a total of 10.49%, finally closing at $4,491.67 per ounce, marking the largest weekly decline since March 1983, nearly 43 years ago. Influenced by the decline in international gold prices, domestic branded gold jewelry prices have fallen for several consecutive days. On March 21, Chow Sang Sang’s pure gold jewelry was priced at 1,389 yuan per gram, down 54 yuan in a single day; Chow Tai Fook’s gold jewelry dropped from 1,447 yuan per gram to 1,397 yuan, a decrease of 50 yuan.

Some analysts say that diverging expectations of global central bank monetary policies, combined with Middle East geopolitical conflicts boosting dollar hedging demand, have led institutions to turn bullish on the dollar, suppressing precious metal investments. Additionally, cautious market sentiment has jointly pressured precious metals.

Yuekai Securities analysis points out that the sharp decline in gold prices in March 2026 was mainly due to geopolitical tensions driving inflation and monetary tightening expectations, profit-taking at high levels, and liquidity panic caused by stock market volatility leading to passive gold selling.

Yuekai Securities believes that during crises, gold is merely a means of liquidation. Currently, after central banks’ gold purchases have pushed prices higher, the trading structure dominated by speculative funds makes gold increasingly resemble a risk asset. In the long term, normalization of geopolitical risks, strong willingness of non-U.S. central banks to buy gold, and a global economy shifting from “inflation” to “stagnation” will support gold prices. This recent plunge is a deep correction within a bull market rather than a sign of its end.

In news, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China announced that it has revised the calculation method for the margin adequacy ratio in its agency personal customer precious metals bidding trading business, adding new risk control requirements for liquidation margins. The margin ratio for forced liquidation is temporarily based on the minimum trading margin ratio set by the Shanghai Gold Exchange.