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In recent weeks, and particularly this Monday and Tuesday, people have been lining up for hours in the Sydney CBD with one goal in mind: buying some gold.

Now, the price has dropped – and sharply.

Yesterday, Australia woke up to the news that the precious metal had suffered its worst single-day fall since 2013, down a whopping 5.7 per cent in one go.

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The trend continued today, down a further 0.6 per cent overnight.

That's a far cry from the astronomical rise in the price of gold this year, which hit a record high of around $US4380 per ounce, or about $6755 for 31 grams, this week, a more than 55 per cent increase since the start of 2025.

The rise has been particularly evident this month – in the space of just 11 days in October, the price surged by some $US400.

But in just a couple of days, it's slid back to roughly $US4080.

So what's going on?

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Much of gold's rise has been attributed to its status as a safe-haven asset.

With all the geopolitical and economic turmoil this year – Donald Trump's tariffs, wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, persistent global inflation, and the US government shutdown to name but a few examples – investors have flocked to the precious metal.

If there was any tendency to then put the initial plunge down to a potential easing in global tensions, the further drop last night – when the gold price eased again even as Russia made a very public display of its intercontinental missile capabilities – would have dispelled that.

Instead, it may just be a case of the rise reaching its natural peak.

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"There's a classic market adage that goes something like 'when financial news moves from the business pages to the front page, the top is near'," NAB head of FX Strategy Ray Attrill said yesterday.

"Wednesday's correction in the gold (and silver) price might be best seen in this context.

"Given the parabolic nature of the run up since September and the knowledge that much of the latest buying spree has been from retail or other private sector investors via ETFs ($US26 billion worth in September alone), a dash for the profits window was inevitable at some point soon, temporary or otherwise." 

Westpac senior economist Pat Bustamante said there are "fears the astronomical rally has been overdone".

"Investors appear to be taking profits given concerns the recent astronomical rally left gold and silver overvalued," he wrote.

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Gold has gone through some temporary – and at times quite sharp – dips throughout the year, including shedding more than $US100 in a day and around $US300 in the space of a month once the initial panic from Trump's "liberation day" tariffs wore off.

It's also still on track for one of its best-ever single-year performances.

"Gold is still up 57 per cent year to date, far outpacing Bitcoin (up 17 per cent) or any of the major global stock indices," Attrill said.

That might not be any great relief to the queues of people who picked some up on Monday, though.

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The information provided on this website is general in nature only and does not constitute personal financial advice. The information has been prepared without taking into account your personal objectives, financial situation or needs. Before acting on any information on this website you should consider the appropriateness of the information having regard to your objectives, financial situation and needs.

A man in his 50s has been stabbed to death in a unit block on the Gold Coast.

Members of the public called authorities just after 1pm in regards to the behaviour of a man in his 20s.

Shortly after, police arrived at an address on Dutton Street in Coolangatta, where a man was found dead.

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9News understands that the alleged offender walked to a nearby construction site and told the workers what unfolded before attempting to flee to Upper Coomera.

Police intercepted the wanted car and arrested the man shortly after 2pm.

Two separate crime scenes have been established, in Coolangatta and in Upper Coomera.

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It is believed that the two men were known to each other, and there is no threat to the public.

Homicide detectives are investigating the incident.

Anybody with information or footage is urged to contact police or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

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Officers, including the AOS and police negotiation team, were called around 3.30pm.

A 12,000-litre tanker from Hokitika was coming in to provide limited water to residents.

A man has escaped serious injury after slipping off a cliff near Victorian tourist hotspot the Twelve Apostles.

Emergency services were called to the Great Ocean Road in Princetown, near Port Campbell, just before 12.40pm following reports a man had fallen 10 metres and landed on a cliff edge below.

Specialist air ambulance helicopter crews, including Mobile Intensive Care Ambulance (MICA) and Advanced Life Support (ALS) paramedics and were called to the area, where the man was winched to safety.

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The man in his 20s was assessed and treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

He has since been transported by air ambulance to the Royal Melbourne Hospital in a stable condition.

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Saturday’s Powerball jackpot climbs to a record for the year after no one won last night.

Prizes on offer in the draw included a 2005 V-Rod motorcycle or $10,000 cash.

Two senior Optus executives will leave the business in the wake of its disastrous triple-zero outage last month.

The telco announced this afternoon that chief financial officer and board member Michael Venter – who had previously served as the company's interim CEO – and chief information officer Mark Potter will finish up with the company early next year.

United Kingdom-born Andy Giles Knopp, currently the chief financial officer at Aussie Broadband, will replace Venter, while One New Zealand's CIO and head of transformation, John McInerney, will take over from Potter.

READ MORE: Aussies queued for hours to buy gold. Now the price has plummeted

Optus said Potter had decided that next year is the "right time for him to leave" after "having established strong technology foundations to support Optus' multi-year transformation".

The claim comes little more than a month after the telco had a 13-hour triple-zero outage, which resulted in more than 600 emergency calls being unable to connect following a botched network upgrade.

Three deaths have been been linked to the outage.

The company, which is Australia's second-largest telecommunications provider behind Telstra, has faced widespread criticism for its handling of the outage, including from government officials who said Optus' notification of the issue wasn't sent to the correct email address.

It will face a Senate inquiry over the outage next week.

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Optus made no mention of the triple-zero failure in announcing Venter and Potter's departures.

"Michael has decided to retire from executive life to pursue a portfolio career, and I wish to thank him for his significant contribution to Optus over the past four years, including the time he spent as interim CEO before I joined the company," chief executive Stephen Rue said of Venter.

"We are delighted to welcome Andy Giles Knopp next year, whose leadership and financial experience will be instrumental as we continue to focus the company on our core business of connectivity, and accelerate our transformation plans with urgency and accuracy."

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In regard to Potter, Rue said the decision came after "long-term and open discussions".

"I wish him all the best with his next chapter," he added.

"Incoming CIO John McInerney brings a wealth of experience and a proven ability to lead complex transformation programs. 

"I look forward to working with him as we work to evolve our IT capabilities to better serve our customers."

Both Venter and Potter will leave Optus in March next year.

Giles Knopp will join the month after, while McInerney will start in November.

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FedEx is encouraging Australias to plan ahead to ensure their Christmas parcels arrive on time.

The shipping company has released the cut-off dates for its domestic and international deliveries to arrive in time for December 25 as the business prepares for a peak period.

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Domestic mail

For people sending shipments interstate with FedEx Economy and Road Express services, parcels should be sent by Friday, December 19 for interstate deliveries.

For deliveries to Western Australia, the Northern Territory or remote areas, Australians should ensure their parcels are sent by Wednesday, December 17.

For FedEx Priority Express customers, the cut-off date for sending parcels to major capital cities within Australia is Monday, December 22.

The final deadline to collect shipments from a local FedEx facility is Tuesday, December 23.

International mail

For economy parcels to New Zealand, the cut-off date is Thursday, December 18 while the final day for priority delivery services is Monday, December 22.

Economy parcels to international locations should be sent by Monday, December 15 while the priority services deadline is Friday, December 19.

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