The team’s investigation confirms that these closures are real. The shops clarified that the conflict involving the U.S., Israel, and Iran has introduced a high risk of price instability. Furthermore, since international markets are closed over the weekend, there is no reliable reference price available for domestic trading.
Thai PBS Verify found the post in question from: Facebook
A Facebook page posted a message stating that “Since opening this gold shop in 2008, today marks only the third time we’ve had to close to customers, no buying, no selling, just waiting to see how the situation unfolds.”
Following the escalation of conflict between Israel, Iran, and the United States, which began on February 28, 2026, Thai PBS Verify identified a post claiming that:
“Since opening this gold shop in 2008, today marks only the third time we’ve had to close to customers, no buying, no selling, just waiting to see how the situation unfolds.”
Are gold shops actually announcing temporary closures?
Based on a keyword search for “Gold” (ทองคำ), it was found that the Gold Traders Association was preparing an urgent meeting to evaluate the impact of the conflict in the Middle East.
Major gold traders, including Hua Seng Heng, MTS Gold (Mae Thongsuk) and YLG, officially announced a temporary suspension of online gold bullion trading. This decision stemmed from the high risk of price volatility caused by the Israel-Iran conflict and the fact that international markets were currently closed, leaving no reliable reference price. Services were scheduled to resume on March 2 at 10:00 AM.
Meanwhile, Mr. Jitti Tangsitpakdee stated that operators were currently unable to clearly assess price trends. He further noted that the Association had temporarily adjusted the gold bullion block fee to 200 baht to manage risk. On that day, the domestic gold price was announced only once, with gold bullion selling at 77,600 Baht and gold ornaments selling at 78,400 Baht per baht of gold.
Hua Seng Heng announced that during the weekend, international gold markets were closed, resulting in the absence of a clear reference price. Consequently, the company suspended its online trading system and all types of gold bullion transactions temporarily. Services were scheduled to resume on Monday, March 2, 2026.
YLG issued a notification to its customers announcing the temporary closure of its online gold trading system. Normal operations were scheduled to resume on March 2, 2026, from 10:00 AM onwards.
MTS GOLD (Mea Thongsuk) announced the closure of its gold bullion sales exclusively at physical branch locations on February 28, 2026. However, services for gold buy-backs, gold consignment (gold for cash), and redemption remained operational as usual.
How is the current gold market situation?
In the morning of March 2, 2026, domestic gold prices experienced a sharp surge, rising by a total of 1,450 Baht. This pushed the selling price of gold bullion to 79,050 Baht and gold ornaments to 79,850 Baht, nearing the threshold of 80,000 Baht. This rally followed the spike in global Gold Spot prices, which reached $5,333.50.
The upward momentum is primarily supported by escalating geopolitical tensions between the United States and Iran, significant gold acquisitions by various funds, and persistent uncertainty within the credit markets. Meanwhile, the Thai baht has remained relatively stable, causing domestic gold prices to move in direct alignment with global market trends. Regarding the short-term outlook, analysts have evaluated a potential technical correction to test the support level at approximately $5,300 before a subsequent recovery. Overall, since the beginning of 2026, domestic gold prices have already increased by a total of 14,100 Baht.
Gold prices surge from panic buying: “Prakit” suggests market may ease if conflict does not escalate
Regarding the clashes between the United States and Iran, Mr. Prakit Siriwattanaket, Managing Director of Merchant Partners Asset Management Ltd., discussed the Thai gold market situation following the temporary suspension of services by several major gold retailers over the weekend. He noted that during the initial phase of such events, the market is typically driven by a wave of panic. This occurs as people believe the conflict will cause gold prices to rise significantly, leading to a massive rush of buyers into the market.
Mr. Prakit Siriwattanaket, Managing Director of Merchant Partners Asset Management Ltd.
According to Mr. Prakit, global gold prices may not always move in sync with domestic demand, which creates significant challenges for gold shops, such as inventory shortages. Conversely, if gold prices continue to climb and the public rushes to sell their holdings, these shops are obligated to buy back the gold at high prices. This substantially increases the risk of financial loss, especially in a volatile environment where prices can fluctuate by several thousand baht within a single day. Consequently, gold retailers must widen the spread between their buying and selling prices as a necessary measure to manage this heightened risk.
Furthermore, there are inherent constraints regarding domestic gold purity, which is standardized at 96.5%, making it difficult to sell in international markets. Consequently, domestic prices are primarily driven by local supply and demand, even while being indexed to global market rates.
At the same time, Mr. Prakit viewed the current market turbulence as merely the initial phase of the Middle East conflict, suggesting that the situation would likely de-escalate gradually, provided the war did not expand to include more military allies. However, he emphasized that a more significant concern is the price of oil. If key shipping routes were to be blocked for weeks or months, the impact on the global economy would be severe. Following these insights, both parties expressed their gratitude and concluded the conversation.
What is the truth?
Thai PBS Verify has confirmed that during the past weekend, three major gold retailers, Hua Seng Heng, MTS Gold (Mae Thongsuk) and YLG, did announce a temporary suspension of their trading services following the military clashes between the United States and Iran. However, as of March 2, 2026, all three providers fully resumed their operations. On that day, the market price for gold bullion was reported at 79,050 Baht, while gold ornaments were priced at 79,850 Baht per baht of gold.
