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Gold prices have hovered well above $1,300 an ounce since mid-2016, but can it really reach $1,900 an ounce by the end of the year?
No doubt, it’s been an eventful year for the gold price, having increased significantly from $1,076.30 per ounce to $1,337.00 as of 4:09 p.m. EST on Monday (September 26, 2016).
Year-to-date, the yellow metal has rallied 25.41 percent overall, peaking in July at $1,365.40 per ounce.
Much of the success the gold price has had can be attributed to the United Kingdom’s decision to leave the European Union in June, although that hasn’t been the only driving force behind its pricing moving up. The US presidential election and the possibility of the federal reserve raising interest rates have also played major roles in the success of the gold price, making 2016 one of its best years in roughly four decades.
Naturally, some analysts are projecting a massive spike for the precious metal. With that in mind, read on below to find out what those gold price predictions are.
Gold price predictions: $1,900 an ounce?
While the gold price hasn’t reached higher than $1,400 an ounce yet this year–and is currently just under $1,340 an ounce–one of the yellow metal’s top bulls believes the yellow metal could make gains of 44 percent before the year is out.
Robert McEwen, chairman and chief officer of McEwen Mining (TSX:MUX) said that the gold price could reach between $1,700 and $1,900 an ounce before the end of 2016, “as uncertainty builds around the stability of global currencies and sovereign debt,” according to Bloomberg.
The publication reported that McEwen said at a gold conference in Colorado Springs that gold “is a currency that doesn’t have a liability attached to it.” He also noted that investors will turn their attention to gold as a store of value and alternative asset as a result of record-low interest rates.
What others are saying
Of course, not everyone is as bullish as McEwen is on the gold price. However, that doesn’t mean others are entirely bearish on gold price predictions.
The panel of analysts polled by FocusEconomics in its September 2016 forecast commodities report see prices “holding steady” over the coming months, averaging $1,342 per ounce in the fourth quarter of 2016. This would mean that the gold price would have rallied more than $200 from the same quarter in 2015.
FocusEconomics also indicates that whenever the next increase in the US interest rates is will also be crucial to the gold price, and that “an earlier-than-expected rise could cause the prices to fall.”
Still, its panel expects the gold price to be consistent, averaging $1,343 per ounce in the fourth quarter of 2017.
That being said, experts over at Cantor Fitzgerald have a slightly different take on gold price predictions. In the company’s July 2016 Sector Update, it said they have, in general raised its predictions for precious metal prices (including the silver price).
However, Cantor Fitzgerald notes that “uncertainty will be a notable driver for gold” for the rest of the year as a result of the US presidential election and post-Brexit fallout leading investors towards gold.
While there are varying opinions as to how high the gold price will go before the year is out, one thing is for certain: investors will surely be keeping an eye on its price in considering the yellow metal as a safe-haven asset.
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Securities Disclosure: I, Jocelyn Aspa, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
