Gold plunged on Friday, steeping more from record peaks touched this week amid robust in the greenback, after the Swiss National Bank unexpectedly cut interest rates, it exerted pressure on the metal markets.

Spot gold plunged 0.4% to $2,173.62 per ounce, while gold futures slumped by 0.5% to $2,174.90 per ounce.

The yellow metal shot to record highs exceeding $2,200 per ounce after the Federal Reserve maintained its forecast for at least three rate cuts in 2024. Its time at these highs was just temporary, though, as the dollar recovered strongly after dovish comments from other well-known central banks.

Gold faced significant pressure primarily due to substantial gains in the dollar, with the dollar index reaching a three-week peak exceeding 104.

The greenback shot up as a surprise rate cut from the SNB, coupled with dovish signals from the Bank of England, left the greenback as the only major high-yielding, low risk currency.