Macro data from China’s manufacturing sector came in stronger than expected, boosting commodity sentiment. The gold futures contract responded positively, adding $12 intraday. That charge taps into a long-standing concern among precious metals investors. Over the past decade, major financial institutions such as JPMorgan and Deutsche Bank have faced investigations and fines for practices like “spoofing” in the precious metals market, where traders place and cancel large orders to distort prices. (2) Control a larger notional value for less money and reduce margin requirements >80% when trading metal contracts in one exchange. Analysts note gold futures contract volume spiked 18% yesterday, signaling market participants are positioning for geopolitical risk events in the Middle East that could fuel safe-haven flows.