The safe-haven status of gold, which has been questioned at various points this year, appears to have been renewed over the past couple of days amid heightened equity market volatility.
For example, the SPDR Gold Shares (NYSEArca: GLD), the largest physically backed gold-related ETF on the market, was trading higher by more than 2% during midday trading Thursday. GLD reclaimed its 20- and 50-day moving averages with a vengeance Thursday, moving above its 50-day line for the first time since the middle of the second quarter.
“Gold rose more than 1 percent to near three-week highs on Thursday, climbing above $1,200 per ounce as sliding global stock markets prompted risk-wary investors to seek out the metal, with a weaker dollar also supporting prices,” reports Reuters.
Investors have turned to GLD as a quick and easy way to gain exposure to gold price movements as they hedge against market risks, help protect their purchasing power in times of inflationary pressures or capitalize on increasing demand from the emerging markets with a growing middle-income class.
Gold Rally Could be Durable
The recent rally in gold comes amid extreme short positioning in the yellow metal and could force traders that short the yellow metal to cover those positions, likely adding to bullion’s near-term upside.