Gold Just Erased Its 2026 Gains But Four Banks Agree on What Comes Next

Gold just hit its lowest point of 2026, and the institutions that called the bull run are not flinching. It was triggered by the latest jobs report: the US economy added 172,000 jobs in May, nearly double the 85,000 analysts had forecast.

That single number sent the dollar higher, pushed bond markets to price a 68% chance of a Fed rate hike by December, and dropped gold 3.27% to $4,339, erasing all its gains for the year in a single session.

As BeInCrypto’s tracker of 2026’s top-performing assets showed, gold had been leading the field before this week’s reversal.

Why the US Jobs Report Drove Gold Price Down

When rate-hike odds rise, Treasury yields rise, and the cost of holding gold over a yield-generating bond increases. The Federal Reserve’s narrative has now fully reversed: markets entered 2026 pricing three rate cuts, and they now price a hike.

Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack said the central bank may need to act soon to bring inflation back to 2%.

Gold has erased its 2026 gains this week. Image Source: Trading Economics

Additionally, the metal tracks rate policy more closely than almost any other macro variable.

What Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Deutsche Bank, and UBS Say About Gold Now

The sell-off has not moved Wall Street’s year-end views. Goldman Sachs holds a $5,400 year-end target.

JPMorgan puts the year-end case at $6,000 to $6,300, Deutsche Bank at $6,000, and UBS at $5,900.

All four see between 23% and 44% upside from current levels. Their shared thesis is that central bank buying, the structural shift by sovereign funds away from dollar-denominated reserves, and a geopolitical risk premium that Federal Reserve rate policy alone does not erase.

When Wall Street first set these targets, demand from non-Western central banks had reshaped the gold market, making it behave differently from previous cycles.

If the four banks are right, this week’s sell-off is the discount. If the Fed hikes and holds, gold’s structural bull case faces its first real test of 2026.