Today is Wednesday, January 8, 2020, and this is your daily gold market update. Let’s look at the latest price of gold, value of the dollar, gold/silver ratio, Commitment of Traders data, and exchange-traded fund (ETF) prices to get a sense of how the yellow metal is faring today.
Gold Price
The price of one troy ounce of gold in U.S. dollars today is $1,560.30. It’s down -0.89% from yesterday and up 21.37% from one year ago. The troy ounce is the most commonly used measure of gold weight in the world. It’s equal to 31.103478 grams.
U.S. Dollar Index
For comparison, the value of the U.S. dollar index today is 97.23. That’s up 0.24% from yesterday and up 2.11% from one year ago. The index measures the value of the U.S. dollar relative to a basket of currencies of the U.S.’s most significant trading partners. It was established in 1973 with a base value of 100.
Gold/Silver Ratio
The latest value of the gold/silver ratio is 85.66. That’s a change of 0.12% from yesterday and a change of 4.47% from one year ago.
The ratio shows how many ounces of silver would be equal in value to an ounce of gold. In the 20th century, the average gold/silver ratio was 47, but in the 21st century, it has moved higher, generally staying within the range of 50 to 100.
Investors use the gold/silver ratio in a variety of ways. Some use it to accumulate gold by exchanging gold for silver when the ratio is high, then silver for gold when the ratio is low. Others profit from changes in the ratio by holding a long position in one metal and a short position in the other.
Commitment of Traders Data
Based on the latest weekly Commitment of Traders data from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), gold producers and users are 65% more bullish than they have been in the last five years, while gold speculators are 82% more bullish than they have been in the last five years.
Commitment of Traders data is a useful contrarian indicator when it reaches extremes. If traders are more than 90% more bullish than they have been in the last five years, that suggests gold may trade down in the near future. Conversely, if traders are less than 10% more bullish than they have been in the last five years, that suggests gold may trade up soon.
Gold ETFs
The SPDR Gold Shares ETF (NYSE: GLD) is the largest gold bullion ETF in the world. Its price today is $146.77. It’s down -0.81% from yesterday and up 21.43% from one year ago.
Meanwhile, the VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF (NYSE: GDX), the largest gold miners ETF in the world, has a price of $28.45 today. That’s a change of -3.56% from yesterday and a change of 41.2% from one year ago.
And the VanEck Vectors Junior Gold Miners ETF (NYSE: GDXJ), the largest junior miners ETF in the world, has a price of $41.06 today. That’s down -3.73% from yesterday and up 38.96% from one year ago.
The Takeaway
In summary, today the price of gold is down, the value of the U.S. dollar is up, and the gold/silver ratio is up. The largest bullion ETF is down, the largest miners ETF is up, and the largest junior miners ETF is down today.
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