Gold, one of the highest-performing assets so far this year

The price of gold reached $3,673.95 an ounce on Tuesday , a 1.07% increase from its Monday price. With this, the price of the precious metal has risen by just over 40% so far this year, higher than the returns of more developed stock markets such as the S&P 500, Dow Jones, and Nasdaq, and even the Mexican stock exchanges, BMV and BIVA .

It is also much higher than the price of oil, which has fallen by 11 percent this year.

Silver is the only asset that has outperformed gold, with a return of 41.69% so far this year.

In Mexico, the S&P/BMV IPC index of the Mexican Stock Exchange rose 22.55% , while the FTSE-BIVA index of the Institutional Stock Exchange gained 20.71% .

On Wall Street, the index that will gain the most in 2025 is Nasdaq (13.30%), followed by the S&P 500 (10.73%) and the Dow Jones (7.44%).

This demonstrates that precious metals are gaining ground as a safe haven asset in the face of the weakening dollar, which has seen a 10% decline so far in 2025, highlighted Alejandra Marcos, Director of Analysis at Kapital Grupo Financiero.

“Gold is a key player in the markets, consolidating its position as one of the most profitable assets in 2025. It has accumulated a return of nearly 5% in September, and an impressive 40% so far this year,” said Felipe Mendoza, Financial Markets Analyst at the brokerage ATFX LATAM.

He listed the reasons why the precious metal is at these levels and they are "due to the weakness of the dollar (which has fallen 10% since January), the increase in expectations of rate cuts by the Federal Reserve , plus the fear of a lack of independence and the renewed appetite of investors for safe haven assets in an environment of global economic and political volatility," he highlighted in an interview.

"In this context, gold is not only an indicator of uncertainty, but also of confidence in fiat currencies," he explained.

Alejandra Marcos agreed: “Since last year, the price of gold has been on the rise, increasing by 23%, driven by uncertainty over the risk of a US economic recession during the presidential elections and, more recently, by Donald Trump's trade policies.”

Experts agreed that all of this is compounded by the escalation of geopolitical conflicts, which reinforce gold's role as a store of value.

"The relative weakness of the dollar plays a key role in supporting prices," Marcos emphasized.

Diversification

The expert noted that the price of silver has also risen by more than 41% so far this year, confirming the renewed interest in precious metals as safe haven assets.

Felipe Mendoza said the effect of the rebound was amplified in the mining sector, as the shares of some companies have risen more than 100%, such as Industrias Peñoles (178.21%), followed by China's Zijin Mining (104.10%); while U.S. companies Newmont Gold (103.98%) and Agnico Eagle Mines (95.31%) are also rising.

"The stock price rally more than doubles the performance of the metal itself, and silver itself has appreciated more than 43% in correlation," he added.

This performance leaves behind industries that set trends this year, such as semiconductors, one of the drivers of the artificial intelligence narrative that accumulates a rise of 16%, with NVIDIA at the head (26%) and although AI continues to attract capital due to its transformative potential in the economy, in terms of profitability, mining companies have taken the lead, positioning themselves as one of the star sectors.

Mendoza explained that, despite the rise in stock markets, the contrast with gold shows how capital flows have diversified. While equities maintain moderate gains driven by technology and consumer spending, gold and mining companies dominate the defensive narrative.

Guillermo Quechol, of Kapital Grupo Financiero, who worked with Alejandra Marcos on gold, stated that the rise in the gold price will continue to be supported by central bank purchases for their reserves.

In its most recent study on gold as part of central bank international reserves, the World Gold Council (WGC) highlighted that, in the last three years, central banks around the world accumulated 1,000 tons of gold, compared to the 400,500 tons held in the previous decade.

The Council highlighted in the survey conducted in the first months of this year that gold has become an important asset for central banks given the uncertain geopolitical and economic environment.

“According to WGC estimates, gold demand in the last 12 months to the second quarter of 2025 comes primarily from the jewelry (38%), investment (35%), and central bank purchases (20%) sectors.

China and India account for around 34% of global demand, especially for jewelry and bullion,” wrote experts from Kapital Grupo Financiero.