Gold and the related exchange traded products are off to very impressive starts this year.
For example, the SPDR Gold Shares (NYSEArca: GLD), iShares Gold Trust (NYSEArca: IAU) and ETFS Physical Swiss Gold Shares (NYSEArca: SGOL) are each up about 8.7%.
Although gold’s ascent to start 2017 has been somewhat quiet, some market observers believe there are factors looming that can continue pushing the yellow metal higher.
Although many market participants still expect the U.S. central bank to boost borrowing costs multiple times this year, investors are renewing their affinity for gold ETFs early in 2017. In the face of a stronger dollar and speculation that the Federal Reserve could raise interest rates as many as three times this year, gold prices could move modestly higher with some help from emerging markets, namely China and India. However, the dollar has recently retreated in noticeable fashion, helping aid gold’s ascent along the way.
“Gold is on pace to log its second straight month in the green; it hasn’t logged such a streak since summer of 2016, in the midst of Britain’s vote to leave the European Union and the U.S. presidential campaigns,” reports CNBC. “Interestingly enough, stocks and gold are rising simultaneously. Gold is up nearly 10 percent year to date as the S&P 500 is up nearly 6 percent in the same time. This time last year, gold was up 15 percent on the year while the market was in the red nearly 5 percent. The commodity tends to move opposite the market as investors see gold as a safe investment in times of a market downturn.”