Research

After a strong 2020 performance where the price rallied 25% in US dollar terms in an environment where rates fell, gold has been much weaker during 2021, down 5% year-to-date with rising rates. While demand for gold has rebounded, particularly in the jewelry and bar and coin markets, the recent gold price sell-off has been largely driven by the sharp increase in interest rates in global fixed income markets relative to the record lows they reached last year 

Gold—Not Just a commodity

Gold is often part of the broad commodity complex: as a component of a commodity index, a holding in an ETF, or a future trading on a commodity exchange. While gold shares some similarities with commodities

Gold benefits from diverse sources of demand: as an investment, a reserve asset, jewelry, and a technology component. It is highly liquid, no one’s liability, carries no credit risk, and is scarce, historically preserving its value over time.