AGE Gold Commentary

AGE Gold Commentary is our regular report analyzing trends in precious metals and rare coins. We monitor domestic and international markets and extrapolate from our 30 years in metals to place current events into a hard asset perspective. View archives.

5/18/2026: Bond market panic whipsaws precious metals

Global bond markets plunged Friday, sending interest rates sharply higher after President Trump left China without a solution to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. When the world’s largest credit markets begin reacting violently to geopolitical events, investors should pay close attention.

While no one can predict the exact tipping point, Friday’s bond market selloff may signal that markets are waking up to a harsher reality: the economic fallout from the Iran war could worsen significantly before the crisis is resolved.

Oil prices climbed again this past week as markets increasingly priced in the likelihood of higher-for-longer inflation tied to the ongoing Iran conflict. That concern was reinforced by a hotter-than-expected Producer Price Index (PPI) report, signaling inflation pressures are accelerating in the U.S.

At the same time, global stock and bond markets appear to be recognizing the growing risks tied to what has become the largest oil supply disruption in modern history.

With global oil stockpiles shrinking and supply cushions fading, markets are now rapidly pricing in the asymmetric risk of much higher energy prices. While the outcome of the conflict remains uncertain, investors are clearly bracing for deeper economic and financial turbulence ahead.

We cover all the latest developments in this AGE Gold Commentary.

You can also view this video on the AGE YouTube channel, which includes a transcript.

Sincerely,

Dana Samuelson
President