Gold Prices Rise To All-Time Highs, Mark Best Month In 4 Years: Mining Stocks Rally As Traders Anticipate Windfall Gains

Gold prices surged past $2,220 an ounce during Thursday’s New York trading session, achieving a new all-time high amid growing anticipation of coordinated interest rate reductions by major central banks.

With an 8.5% increase in March 2024, this marks gold’s best monthly performance since July 2020, when it climbed 10.8% amid substantial monetary and fiscal stimulus efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The robust surge in gold prices has lifted the values of gold mining companies, with the VanEck Gold Miners ETF GDX climbing about 20% for the month, marking its best monthly performance since November 2020.

Medium-term debt dynamics in Europe and the U.S., alongside increasing domestic political polarization, have spurred central banks to ramp up their gold purchases, according to Bank of America’s commodities and derivatives strategist Francisco Blanch.

Blanch draws a parallel to the end of USD-gold convertibility in 1971, which heralded a new international monetary system.

Similarly, he suggests the escalating geopolitical rift between the U.S./European Union and China/Russia, encompassing trade, politics and defense, is at “the heart of the run up in gold.”

Chart: Gold Notches Best-Performing Month In Nearly 4 Years

Top-Performing Gold Mining Stocks In March 2024

The top performers within the VanEck Gold Miners ETF portfolio for March 2024 were:

• Equinox Gold Corp. EQX, with an increase of 49%.
• Coeur Mining, Inc. CDE, rising by 44.2%.
• Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited HMY and Torex Gold Resources Inc. TORXF, both up by 42%.
• OceanaGold Corporation OCANF, which saw a 37% increase.

The leading performers in the VanEck Junior Gold Miners ETF GDXJ portfolio for March 2024 included:

• Argonaut Gold Inc. ARNGF, with a gain of 70.65%.
• McEwen Mining Inc. MUX, which rose by 60.34%.
• Australian Strategic Materials Ltd ASMMF, with an increase of 40.82%.
• Gatos Silver, Inc. GATO, closely behind with a 40.48% gain.
• Hochschild Mining plc HCHDF, with a rise of 36.57%.

Read now: Easter’s Bitter Surprise: Cocoa Is Up 240% In A Year – What Can A Ton Of The Chocolate Commodity Get You Today?

Photo via Shutterstock.