Precious metals tumbled Monday as the U.S. – Iran war stretched into its fifth week, fueling concerns over inflation, higher interest rates and potential sales from central banks. Spot gold fell 1.38% to $4,462 a troy ounce after surging 2.7% in the prior session. Silver slid 2% to $68.30 an ounce in Asian hours.

The selloff caps a 15% decline in gold since hostilities erupted, with bullion moving in tandem with equities and against surging oil prices. Escalating energy costs have stoked worries that the Federal Reserve could tighten policy to combat inflation—a headwind for non-yielding assets like gold.

Media reports opportunistic buyers nibbling at the dip after gold’s sharpest selloff in years. Yet persistent conflict risks loom large: Tehran faced power blackouts from missile strikes over the weekend, Iran-backed Houthis escalated involvement, and the U.S. bolstered regional troop deployments. Iran also hit aluminum smelters in Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.

 Turkey’s central bank, meanwhile, offloaded and swapped some 60 tons of gold—worth over $8 billion—in the conflict’s first two weeks, challenging the narrative of unwavering central-bank accumulation.

For traders, the gold-silver ratio’s leap to 65 signals a potential pivot to gold over silver. Watch Fed signals, oil trajectories and de-escalation news. Support looms at $4,200; resistance near $4,500. Volatility suits options plays or hedges via ETFs like GLD or SLV.