Gold miner exchange traded funds surged Thursday as precious metals prices climbed for the fourth session in a row on a weakening U.S. dollar.
On Thursday, the VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF (NYSEArca: GDX) rose 6.5% and the VanEck Vectors Gold Junior Miners ETF (NYSEArca: GDXJ) gained 7.6% as the SPDR Gold Shares (NYSEArca: GLD) added 1.3%, with Comex gold futures up 1.5% to $1,157.7 per ounce.
Meanwhile, more aggressive traders capitalized on the Thursday rally with leveraged options, such as the triple leveraged Direxion Daily Gold Miners Bull 3X Shares (NYSEArca: NUGT), which surged 18.0%, and the triple leveraged junior gold miners Direxion Daily Junior Gold Miners Index Bull 3x Shares (NYSEArca: JNUG), which jumped 22.5%.
ETF traders who are uncomfortable with the riskier 3x products can also track the miner space with a smaller 2x leverage. For example, the ProShares Ultra Gold Miners (NYSEArca: GDXX) and ProShares Ultra Junior Miners (NYSEArca: GDJJ) take the 2x or 200% daily performance of NYSE Arca Gold Miners Index and Market Vectors Global Junior Gold Miners Index, respectively. On Thursday, GDXX increased 12.8% and GDJJ advanced 16.0%.
Gold-related asset strengthened as the U.S. dollar weakened Thursday – the U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of major foreign currencies, dipped 0.6% to 102.65. A weakening USD is typically bullish for gold, making it cheaper for foreign buyers.