Despite a mid-month correction, exchange traded funds that invest in gold were among the best performers in August, backed by safe-haven demand and a tumultuous market. Gold miner ETFs were also top performers this month as they benefited from the precious metal’s rise.
SPDR Gold Shares (NYSEArca: GLD) and iShares Gold Trust (NYSEArca: IAU) are up more than 10% this month, while Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF (NYSEArca: GDX) has added about 7%. [Gold Miners ETF Eyes Breakout]
Gold ETFs were fractionally lower Wednesday following the previous session’s 3% rally on talk the Federal Reserve may announce more stimulus for the economy. [Gold ETFs Rise]
BMO Capital Markets analysts calculate that some gold miners are the cheapest they’ve been in 20 years, writes Murray Coleman for Barron’s.
RBC Capital Markets analysts found that gold producers currently sit on record high margins, which could average $1,200 an ounce over the next couple of years. In contrast, the 10-year average is around $320 an ounce. An RBC report states that gold companies are at an “inflection point” where they will see a “substantial wave of free cash flow” over the next couple years. [Gold Miners ETF Near All-Time High]
“Equities are reasserting themselves, but in the backdrop, traders know the Fed is going to do something to stimulate the economy, so sell-offs in gold are being bought,” commented Adam Klopfenstein, a strategist at MF Global, reports Pham-Duy Nguyen for Bloomberg.
The recent moves in gold are attributed to rising demand outside of the U.S., according to International Business Times.