On October 17, the financial association reported (Editor Zhao Hao) that on Thursday (October 17) at the beginning of the New York trading session, spot gold strengthened, reaching a high of $2688.82 per ounce, breaking the record set on September 26.

As of press time, the spot gold price is $2684 per ounce, with an intraday gain of nearly 0.4%; at the same time, the continuous main gold futures price is $2699 per ounce, breaking through the 2700 mark intraday, but still below the 2708 on September 26.

Analysis suggests that in addition to geopolitical tensions driving the market, the gold price is also influenced by the 'Trump trade'. Recently, Republican presidential candidate Trump's approval rating has significantly increased, leading the market to increasingly believe Trump will win next month's US election.

OANDA's senior market analyst for the Asia-Pacific region, Kelvin Wong, said, 'With uncertainty surrounding the US election, investors are turning to gold as a safe haven. Trump's reelection should support gold as he may escalate trade tensions and expand budget deficits.'

Overnight, Trump mentioned that if he were to take office, his core policies would focus on economic growth and bringing businesses back to the USA. He vigorously defended high tariffs in interviews, viewing it as a way to stimulate economic growth.

In his opening remarks, Trump stated that he would impose tariffs on imported goods and reduce taxes for domestic businesses, 'To me, the most beautiful word in the dictionary is tariffs.'

Democratic presidential candidate Harris has not made reducing the deficit one of her key presidential campaign agendas.

Later in the day, the USA will also release retail sales data and jobless claims reports. Wong added: "Investors will carefully study the data, and if the data is below expectations, it may further drive gold prices up. The prospect of lower global interest rates will be bullish for gold."

CME Group's 'FedWatch Tool' shows that the market expects a more than 92% chance of a 25 basis point rate cut by the Fed in November; the ECB is expected to cut rates by 25 basis points today, and the likelihood of action by the Bank of England next month has also increased.

Some analysts suggest that gold may face immediate resistance at $2700, but it is expected to climb to $2900 levels by next year. Senior Commodities Strategist Daniel Hynes from ANZ Banking Group mentioned that amid escalating tensions in the Middle East, safe-haven demand has received a boost.

According to media reports, Israeli officials revealed that Israel may strike Iran in the coming days, but the targets of the attack are yet to be confirmed. Earlier, some US officials believed that Israel would strike Iran before the US presidential election on November 5th in response to missile attacks from Tehran.