By Bharat Gautam

(Reuters] – Palladium sought to maintain a record high in volatile trades on Tuesday. The Russia-Ukraine crises fueled fears about a shortage of Palladium, and safe-haven Gold also pushed past the critical $2,000 threshold.

At 1033 GMT, spot palladium had gained 1.4% to $3,037.76 an ounce. The price of spot palladium fluctuated between gains of 7.5% to 3.4% in volatile price action after it soared to an all-time high of $3.440.76 on Monday.

Platinum rose 1.3% and reached $1,138.01.

Russia is the world’s largest producer of the auto-catalyst-metal. Financial sanctions against Russia for their invasion of Ukraine will likely disrupt shipping and worsen the shortage.

Ole Hansen, a Saxo bank analyst, stated that the palladium cost of producing a car is low and car makers would pay nearly any price to get the metal.

The price of an ounce rose 0.4% to $2.006.40 after it climbed to $2.020.80 earlier in this day. This is its highest level since August 2020.

Hansen noted that gold remains a safe haven for low-volatility assets. We are facing a time of high inflation when central banks will have difficulty putting up any defense because of other constraints. Investors will still flock to the gold market, despite this high inflation.

Analysts say gold, which is traditionally considered to be a secure store of value during global crises like those of the past, may make another attempt at $2,072.50 on Aug. 7, 2020, if things get worse. [O/R]

U.S. prices rose 0.7% to $2.008.90 Spot silver rose 1.7% to $26.09.

Ricardo Evangelista, senior analyst at ActivTrades said that gold is the best antidote for stagflation – an economic recession with high inflation – and it is becoming more plausible if they continue to escalate.