XAU Gold Market Analysis May 18, 2026.06 The analysis on April 24th has explained in detail the reasons for the current pullback of gold. The short-term news, policies, and international situation that currently affect gold have not changed significantly compared to at that time. A brief review is as follows: The situation in the Middle East has pushed up crude oil prices, inflation expectations have risen, US bond yields have risen, and the market has re priced "high interest rates for longer", with the possibility of even raising interest rates within a trading year. This creates short-term pressure on non interest bearing assets such as gold. However, short-term suppression does not mean the end of the medium-term trend. According to Q1 data from the World Gold Council, global central banks net bought 244 tons of gold in the first quarter, with a net inflow of 62 tons into gold ETFs. The attitude of big players towards gold has not changed, and ordinary investors need not panic. Technically speaking, the decline in gold since 4890 (blue segment) is a correction to the rise from 4100-4890 (red segment on the left). If we consider it as a three-stage callback, it basically meets the conditions at present. If we can break through 4637 and stabilize above it in the future, then the blue segment is likely to be the entirety of the adjustment. The rise starting from 4480 on this path is on the same level as 4100-4890, and the endpoint is above 5000; If it falls below 4480 again, it may be running a deep and complex callback, which will receive support in the red support range shown in the graph. After confirming the end of the callback, gold is still expected to rise to 5000+.