ETFs to Consider as Gold Jumps to 2-Week High

Weakening dollar, persistent geopolitical and economic uncertainty, and rising market expectations of further Fed rate cuts continue to support investor interest in gold. Gold price has risen 3.58% over the past five days and 55.39% year to date.

Strong fundamental indicators could extend gold’s gains into 2026, boosting the case for increased portfolio allocation. According to Reuters, gold prices jumped on Monday, reaching a two-week high, on disappointing U.S. data, rising Fed rate cut expectations and additional support from a weaker dollar.

Rate Cuts, Weaker Dollar Make the Case for Gold Stronger

The greenback's value tends to move inversely with interest rate adjustments by the Fed. Interest rate cuts by the Fed make the dollar less attractive to foreign investors, as this weakens the U.S. dollar. Per TradingView, the U.S. Dollar Index (DXY) has fallen 0.52% over the past five days and 8.17% year to date. The index has recorded an all-time decline of 16.88%.

A weaker U.S. dollar generally leads to higher demand for gold, pushing its price upward as it becomes more affordable for buyers holding other currencies.

According to the CME FedWatch tool, markets are anticipating a 64.6% likelihood of another interest rate cut in December.

What Else is Pushing Gold Higher?

The U.S. government shutdown that began on Oct. 1 has added to the already uncertain economic backdrop in the country. Additionally, according to the abovementioned article, earlier this month, U.S. consumer sentiment slid to its weakest level in almost three and a half years on concerns over the economic impact of the prolonged government shutdown.

Per Kevin Hassett, White House economic adviser, fourth-quarter U.S. economic growth could slip into negative territory if the shutdown drags on, as quoted in the Reuters article.

According to Yahoo Finance, most of the drivers behind the strong rally, including elevated economic and geopolitical uncertainties as well as continued central bank buying and retail demand, continue. In this context, gold remains an attractive investment option.

ETFs to Consider

The yellow metal remains a crucial hedge for investors amid growing macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainty.  Below, we highlight a few funds where investors can increase their allocation to gain greater exposure to gold.

Physical Gold ETFs  

Investors can consider SPDR Gold Shares GLD, iShares Gold Trust IAU, SPDR Gold MiniShares Trust GLDM, abrdn Physical Gold Shares ETF SGOL and iShares Gold Trust Micro IAUM to increase their exposure to the yellow metal.

With a one-month average trading volume of 22.28 million shares, GLD is the most liquid option, ideal for active trading strategies. However, implementing an active strategy in the current landscape may not be the most effective approach.

Adopting a long-term passive investment strategy becomes the go-to approach for investors to weather short-term market storms. Investors should not be discouraged by any likely decline in gold prices. Instead, they should adopt a "buy-the-dip" strategy.

GLD has gathered an asset base of $133.51 billion, the largest among the other options. Regarding annual fees, GLDM and IAUM are the cheapest options, charging 0.10% and 0.09%, respectively, which makes them more suitable for long-term investing.

Gold Miners ETFs

These ETFs focus on gold miners, usually magnifying gold’s gains and losses. They provide access to the gold mining industry, not the commodity’s price.

Investors can consider VanEck Gold Miners ETF GDX, Sprott Gold Miners ETF SGDM, VanEck Junior Gold Miners ETF GDXJ and Sprott Junior Gold Miners ETF SGDJ.

With a one-month average trading volume of 32.09 million shares, GDX is the most liquid option. GDX has also gathered an asset base of $21.25 billion, the largest among the other options. Regarding annual fees, SGDM and SGDJ are the cheapest options, charging 0.50%.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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