The Middle East war has severely damaged oil infrastructure in the region, including storage, transport, and port facilities, which may take years to a decade to fully restore, leading to sustained high oil prices and stagflation risk.
The Bank of Korea resumed gold purchases for the first time in 13 years as part of foreign reserve diversification. This is an encouraging signal because gold is the oldest form of money and central banks like the People's Bank of China have been accumulating heavily. The BOK's move adds demand support to gold, which is positive for the gold price even after the recent run-up.