Gold, Silver Smash Records as Trump Sets Feb. 1 Tariffs Over Greenland Standoff

Gold (XAU/USD) printed $4,689.39/oz and silver (XAG/USD) tagged $94.08/oz today, after President Donald Trump tied a new tariff schedule to a Greenland standoff in a Truth Social post on Saturday that set explicit start dates and step-ups.

Trump Sets Feb. 1 Tariff Start Date in Greenland Dispute

Trump wrote that the U.S. will impose a 10% tariff from Feb. 1, 2026, on “any and all goods” from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the U.K., the Netherlands, and Finland, then lift the rate to 25% from June 1, 2026, until “the Complete and Total purchase of Greenland” occurs.

🇪🇺 🇺🇸 🇬🇱 Eight #European countries targeted by #US President Donald #Trump for a 10% #tariff for opposing American control of Greenland on Sunday warned that his threats “undermine transatlantic relations and risk a dangerous downward spiral.”

FRANCE 24 takes a closer look. pic.twitter.com/4GnDxkWwA2

— FRANCE 24 English (@France24_en) January 19, 2026

“This Tariff will be due and payable until such time as a Deal is reached for the Complete and Total purchase of Greenland,” Trump stated in the post.

Price action favored the higher-beta metal: spot silver rose about 4.4% intraday to $93.85/oz after the $94.08/oz print, while spot gold rose about 1.6% to $4,670.01/oz after the $4,689.39/oz high.

Cross-asset tape confirmed “risk-off” positioning: European equities traded lower on Jan. 19, 2026, as the tariff timeline hit, with Germany’s DAX falling 1.1% and the CAC 40 in Paris falling 1.3% in early moves cited by AP News.

The next macro catalyst sits on the rates channel: the Bank of Japan has scheduled its Monetary Policy Meeting for Jan. 22-23, 2026, with the Statement on Monetary Policy slated for Jan. 23 and the Summary of Opinions due Feb. 2.

Liquidity note for desks running metal exposure: U.S. markets are closed on Jan. 19, 2026, for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, which historically concentrates price discovery into futures/FX venues and can widen intraday slippage on leveraged metal products.

What Markets Are Pricing In

Gold’s record print at $4,689/oz matters less than the tariff calendar at Feb. 1 and June 1 because systematic macro books map those dates into USD rate volatility and cross-asset correlation spikes.

If the BoJ on Jan. 23 indicates tighter policy while Washington simultaneously escalates trade restrictions, desks should expect convex moves in JPY crosses and mechanically higher demand for collateral-friendly havens, with silver’s $94/oz spike acting as a tell for funds that express the same hedge through higher beta and industrial tightness rather than pure store-of-value exposure.