Spot gold price has surged over 60% so far this year, gaining in nine of the last 10 months.
- Speculation about a potential Fed rate cut has driven up sentiment for precious metals such as gold and silver, with spot silver hitting all-time highs earlier today.
- Goldman Sachs survey shows 36% of institutional clients polled expect gold to top $5,000 per ounce by the end of 2026.
- U.S. gold futures maturing in February gained over 1% to $4,244 per ounce.
Spot gold (XAU/USD) climbed 1.2% on Friday to hit its highest level in two weeks. The precious metal is heading for its fourth straight monthly advance and has risen in nine of the past ten months.
At the time of writing, gold traded at around $4,211 per ounce and was on track for its biggest weekly gain since the week ending Oct. 10, 2025.
U.S. gold futures maturing in February gained over 1% to $4,244 per ounce.
On Friday, trading was affected after a technical outage at CME Group, the world’s largest derivatives exchange, led to a halt in trading across all markets. The problem was caused by a cooling issue at a CyrusOne data centre in the Chicago area.
Fed Rate Cut Hopes
Speculation about a potential Fed rate cut on December 10 has driven up sentiment for precious metals such as gold and silver. Earlier today, spot silver (XAG/USD) hit a fresh high of $55.86 per ounce, at the time of writing, surpassing the previous record of about $54.50 set on October 17.
According to data from the CME FedWatch tool, there is an 86.9% probability of a 25-basis-point rate cut at the December 10 meeting. A week back, the figure stood at 71%.
Historically, periods of economic or political uncertainty have driven investors toward safe-haven assets such as gold and silver. Expectations of easier monetary policy also tend to boost precious metals by lowering borrowing costs and weakening the dollar.
Investors Remain Bullish
According to a Goldman Sachs survey, as reported by CNBC on Friday, many investors believe the rally is far from over. In a poll of more than 900 institutional clients, 36% expect gold to top $5,000 per ounce by the end of 2026, while another 33% see it landing between $4,500 and $5,000.
Overall, more than 70% of respondents anticipate higher prices next year, with only a small minority expecting a pullback to the $3,500 to $4,000 range.
Prices have already jumped by more than 60% year-to-date, breaking above the $4,000 mark for the first time on October 8.
Brokerages remain bullish, too. Earlier this month, UBS lifted its mid-2026 upside target for gold to $4,900 per ounce from $4,700, saying the forces behind this year’s rally remain intact heading into next year. The firm expects continued Fed rate cuts, lower real yields, and persistent geopolitical risks to keep demand strong.
Its outlook aligns with Goldman Sachs, which also projects gold reaching $4,900 by the end of 2026.
ETF Watch
The SPDR Gold Shares ETF (GLD) gained 1% to $387.2 on Friday, with retail sentiment on Stocktwits turning “neutral” from “bearish” a day earlier.
Sentiment toward the iShares Gold Trust (IAU) remained in the “neutral” territory for the past 24 hours.
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