The war in Iran has dealt a heavy blow to investors relying on precious metals, with fund data showing sharp losses over the past month.
According to figures from the Turkish Electronic Fund Distribution Platform (TEFAS), precious metals funds recorded the steepest decline, falling 11.2 percent. Equity funds followed with a 5.3 percent drop, while money market funds stood out as the only category to remain in positive territory, despite significant outflows.
Markets under war pressure have not only punished riskier assets but also traditional safe havens. Gold, long considered a secure refuge, faced heavy selling as rising oil prices and a stronger dollar weighed on its value. Just before the conflict erupted on Feb. 28, gold closed the month at $5,263 per ounce. By March, it had slumped to $4,099, losing 22 percent. Although it rebounded to $4,500 last week, inflation concerns driven by high oil prices continue to fuel volatility.
TEFAS data highlights that precious metals funds lost 11.2 percent in the past month, reflecting the turbulence. In contrast, money market funds managed to stay positive, posting a 2.8 percent gain. Yet these funds also saw rapid withdrawals, with more than 300 billion Turkish Liras exiting in March, reducing their total size to 1.3 trillion liras.
Altan Aydın, fund manager at Perform Portföy, explained that the outflows from money market funds were partly due to increased demand for foreign currency and commodities priced in dollars.
