The broader market selloff followed fresh military strikes on Iran, which pushed U.S. crude to $90.22 and Brent to $94.65 per barrel. While geopolitical instability often bolsters gold as a safe haven, the current surge in oil prices is instead amplifying inflation fears and pushing the 10-year Treasury yield to 4.79%. This environment has overshadowed the metal's defensive appeal, as higher yields increase the opportunity cost of holding bullion.

Technically, the metal is testing a critical support cluster between $4,329 and $4,311 after slicing through its 20-day and 100-day moving averages. Silver followed suit, dropping 3.71% to $63.950. Equity markets mirrored the sentiment, with the S&P 500 falling 0.7% and the Nasdaq Composite sliding 1.0%. Investors are now looking toward upcoming labor data, including Wednesday’s ADP employment report and Friday’s nonfarm payrolls, to determine if the economy can cool the current hawkish momentum.