Gold stocks lead ASX gains as global prices inch higher
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The news: Gold majors led gains on the ASX today as global bullion prices continued recent advances along with investors pouring into the safe haven asset class during a weak trading day.
The numbers: Five of the top 10 best performing stocks on the ASX by 2:30pm AEST were gold explorers, as Genesis Minerals (4.6%), Capricorn Metals (2.1%), Sandfire Resources (2%), Bellevue Gold (2%) and De Grey Mining (1.8%) all moved higher. Materials was the third-best performing sector, down 0.55%, as the broader market lost 1.3%.
Bullion inched up USD2.80 ($4.21) to USD2,359 an ounce, having notched fresh record highs last week. Gold prices have lifted over 15% in the last six months and around 20% in the past year.
The context: Today's hotter-than-expected CPI figures triggered a sell-off in the Australian sharemarket and investors tend to turn to safe haven assets during a downturn.
Gold's upward trajectory in recent days has also been boosted in part by a weakness in the US dollar, as well as raised expectations for US interest rate cuts this year.
Meanwhile intensifying geopolitical risks in Russia and the Middle East have helped to lift gold prices further.
