Palladium futures hold near $1,300/oz after Fed

Palladium futures held near $1,300 per ounce, the lowest in more than a month, after the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy meeting. The Fed raised its benchmark rate for the first time since 2023 and is expected to deliver another hike this year, with elevated economic and geopolitical uncertainty increasing the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding assets such as palladium. Persistent supply vulnerabilities in South Africa, tied to high operating costs and power grid instability, continued to cloud mine output. Ongoing trade and geopolitical risks around Russian palladium also lent support to prices.