3 Best Gold ETF Picks for 2026
2025-12-19 16:09:00 ET
Through Dec. 15, 2025, the price of gold is up 62% year to date. If it's able to hold on to that gain through the end of the year, it would be the fourth-best calendar year performance going back at least 110 years. It would also be the best year since 1979, when gold prices rose 133%.
Gold has a reputation as either a defensive or inflation hedge. But 2025 has really featured neither. The S&P 500 is up more than 14% so far this year, and investors have mostly been risk seekers. Inflation is still above the Federal Reserve 's target, but at 3% annualized, it's far from spinning out of control.
In reality, gold is a volatility hedge more than anything. Over the long term, the correlation between U.S. stocks and gold is near zero. That makes it a great risk diversifier in a broader portfolio. As far as how gold might perform in any year, however, is really anybody's guess!
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