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Gold ended 1990 slightly lower despite a brief Gulf War spike toward $420, as a strong dollar and high interest rates capped demand.
Monthly path for 1990, anchored to the real open ($ 401.00), the high in September, the low in June, and the close ($ 391.00). The dashed line marks the yearly average; intra-year movement between anchor points is illustrative.
Year-over-year, gold fell -2.49% versus its 1989 close of $ 401.00.
1990 showed how the 1980s bear market had numbed gold’s response even to war. Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait in August sent the price jumping toward $420 in a classic safe-haven reflex, but the rally evaporated within weeks as markets grew confident in a decisive US-led military response.
With interest rates high and the dollar firm, there was little to sustain gold, and it slipped back to finish near $391, modestly lower for the year. The episode underlined how out of favour gold had become — even a major war could only briefly stir it.
Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait in August briefly lifted gold toward $420.
The spike quickly faded as confidence in a US-led response grew.
High interest rates made non-yielding gold relatively unattractive.
Gold drifted back to close the year near $391.
Iraq’s August 1990 invasion of Kuwait briefly pushed gold toward $420, but the spike faded quickly and gold ended the year slightly lower.
High interest rates, a firm dollar, and confidence in a swift US-led response capped gold, which closed near $391.
Gold's 1990 high was about $ 423.00 per troy ounce, reached in September.
The average gold price in 1990 was roughly $ 384.00 per troy ounce — it opened near $ 401.00 and closed around $ 391.00.
Gold fell about 2.5% over 1990, between a low of $ 346.00 and a high of $ 423.00.
Historical figures are approximate annual values shown for educational analysis and may differ from other sources. This is not financial advice — see our disclaimer.