The price of spot gold experienced a sharp decline, falling below the $4,000 per ounce threshold and continuing to drop to around $3,960. The metal lost over $50 during the day and has now retreated more than $1,600 from its peak earlier this year.

Market risk aversion cooled following the decision by the US and Iran to continue negotiations over the weekend. Concurrently, investors are still assessing the outlook for potential interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve this year, leading to a rise in US Treasury yields. These factors have put downward pressure on international gold and silver prices.

At Monday's close, the gold futures contract for August delivery on the COMEX settled at $4,038.90 per ounce, marking a decline of 1.40%. The July silver futures contract closed at $58.632 per ounce, down 1.00%.

The listed retail prices for gold jewelry from major domestic brands in China have also been consistently decreasing.

Data from June 30th shows that the per-gram price for gold jewelry at several brands has fallen by more than 500 yuan from the highs seen at the beginning of the year.

Lao Feng Xiang quoted a price of 1,206 yuan per gram, down 29 yuan from the previous day's 1,235 yuan. This represents a drop of 507 yuan from its January peak of 1,713 yuan per gram.

Chow Sang Sang was quoted at 1,213 yuan per gram, a decrease of 26 yuan from 1,239 yuan the day before. Its price is 495 yuan lower than its early-year high of 1,708 yuan per gram.

Chow Tai Fook listed its price at 1,208 yuan per gram, falling 30 yuan from 1,238 yuan. This is a 498 yuan decline from its 2024 peak of 1,706 yuan per gram.

Lao Miao Gold offered a price of 1,212 yuan per gram, down 25 yuan from 1,237 yuan. Its price has dropped 510 yuan from the January high of 1,722 yuan per gram.