Precious metals like gold can provide investors with the uncorrelated diversification of their investment capital via the convenience, transparency and liquidity of an exchange-traded fund (ETF).
Amid first-quarter earnings thus far, gold has taken a back seat with the precious metal falling below its previous $1,300 price level. However, analysts at Goldman Sachs remain steadfast that gold could recover and head upward prior to the end of 2019.
“Gold has always been primarily a hedge against tail-risk events and the current low-volatility environment reduces investment appetite for gold,” Goldman said. “Despite a significant drop in long-term real rates, gold prices have remained flat YTD (year-to-date) as recession fears have receded since late last year.
“However, we believe gold prices have likely undershot fundamental value. Recent increases in the Shanghai gold premium signals that Chinese are using lower prices as a buying opportunity.”
In addition to gold, investors can also look to palladium, which soared to record highs thus far in 2019. How does it compare to another precious metal like platinum?
“Palladium is also set to benefit more than platinum from tighter environmental restrictions in China,” Goldman Sachs said. “As such we reopen our long palladium-versus-short platinum trade recommendation.”
For investors looking to buy into precious metals, here are 20 precious metals ETFs to consider according to ETFdb.com as of April 26, 2019:
| Symbol | ETF Name | Commodity | Total Assets ($MM) | YTD | Avg Volume | Previous Closing Price | 1-Day Change |
| GLD | SPDR Gold Trust | Gold | $30,787.77 | -0.56% | 7,514,664 | $120.57 | 0.08% |
| IAU | iShares Gold Trust | Gold | $12,258.77 | -0.49% | 13,892,106 | $12.23 | 0.08% |
| SLV | iShares Silver Trust | Silver | $4,635.90 | -3.58% | 7,369,965 | $14.00 | 0.00% |
| SGOL | Aberdeen Standard Physical Swiss Gold Shares ETF | Gold | $858.05 | -0.44% | 52,265 | $123.13 | 0.13% |
| GLDM | SPDR Gold MiniShares Trust | Gold | $638.16 | -0.55% | 771,262 | $12.75 | 0.08% |
| PPLT | Aberdeen Standard Platinum Shares ETF | Platinum | $581.16 | 11.43% | 93,673 | $83.84 | 0.26% |
| BAR | GraniteShares Gold Trust | Gold | $448.15 | -0.37% | 145,135 | $12.74 | 0.08% |
| GLTR | Aberdeen Standard Physical Precious Metals Basket Shares ETF | Broad Precious Metals | $355.38 | 0.55% | 27,976 | $63.51 | 0.13% |
| SIVR | Aberdeen Standard Physical Silver Shares ETF | Silver | $320.47 | -3.46% | 87,532 | $14.52 | 0.00% |
| PALL | Aberdeen Standard Physical Palladium Shares ETF | Palladium | $227.94 | 12.23% | 44,927 | $133.61 | -0.25% |
| USLV | VelocityShares 3x Long Silver ETN | Silver | $223.21 | -15.07% | 205,840 | $62.93 | 0.21% |
| AGQ | ProShares Ultra Silver | Silver | $171.97 | -9.78% | 153,541 | $23.79 | -0.13% |
| OUNZ | Van Eck Merk Gold Trust | Gold | $148.09 | -0.52% | 40,030 | $12.52 | 0.08% |
| UGLD | VelocityShares 3x Long Gold ETN | Gold | $108.54 | -4.63% | 81,103 | $90.99 | 0.25% |
| DBP | Invesco DB Precious Metals Fund | Broad Precious Metals | $107.35 | -1.70% | 28,914 | $35.75 | 0.03% |
| AAAU | Perth Mint Physical Gold ETF | Gold | $105.42 | -0.51% | 18,962 | $12.76 | 0.16% |
| DGL | Invesco DB Gold Fund | Gold | $101.88 | -0.92% | 33,427 | $39.17 | 0.18% |
| DGP | DB Gold Double Long ETN | Gold | $82.50 | -2.38% | 22,694 | $22.57 | 0.18% |
| UGL | ProShares Ultra Gold | Gold | $70.67 | -3.18% | 68,619 | $36.22 | 0.22% |
| DSLV | VelocityShares 3x Inverse Silver ETN | Silver | $30.07 | 11.41% | 73,806 | $31.19 | -0.06% |
Leveraged Gold Plays
Traders seeking to take advantage gold via leveraged plays can look at the Direxion Daily Jr Gold Miners Bull 3X ETF (NYSEArca: JNUG) and Direxion Daily Gold Miners Bull 3X ETF (NYSEArca: NUGT).
From a technical analyst perspective though, one notable traders are watching is gold’s ability to hover around the $1,275 price range, which represents a key Fibonacci retracement level. The recent move under $1,275 could certainly test gold prices with more downward pressure.
For more market trends, visit ETF Trends.
