Investors Pour Nearly $1 Billion Into Gold ETF as 2026 Buying Spree Accelerates
Gold’s powerful rally over the past year hasn’t stopped investors from chasing fresh exposure in 2026 — even as strategists at Goldman Sachs warn the precious metal may not be the portfolio hedge many believe it to be.
In its 2026 outlook, Goldman Sachs’ wealth-management investment strategy team cautioned that gold has a history of deep and prolonged drawdowns, noting that the metal has suffered declines of as much as 70% in past cycles. When compared with U.S. bonds — traditionally viewed as a stabilizer during market turbulence — gold’s long-term risk profile looks far less defensive.
Historically, “gold has higher volatility than U.S. equities, much larger drawdowns, and only effectively hedges inflation about half the time over rolling 20-year periods,” said Brett Nelson, head of tactical asset allocation for Goldman’s investment-strategy group, during a media briefing. By contrast, Nelson noted that U.S. equities have consistently outpaced inflation over similar long-term horizons.
Despite those warnings, investors are clearly voting with their wallets.
On Monday, traders poured $950 million into SPDR Gold Shares (GLD), one of the world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded funds, according to FactSet data. That massive inflow more than erased the fund’s earlier 2026 withdrawals, pushing its net inflows for the year to $118 million.
The renewed enthusiasm comes after a historic run in 2025. The ETF is already higher this year after soaring nearly 64% last year, marking its strongest annual performance since its launch in late 2004. That rally dwarfed its previous record gain of just over 30% in 2007, also during a period of heightened market uncertainty.
The surge in demand suggests investors are still seeking protection against economic and market risks — even as major Wall Street strategists question whether gold truly deserves its reputation as a reliable long-term diversifier.
With nearly $1 billion rushing into GLD in a single day, one thing is clear: the gold trade is far from dead in 2026 — and investor appetite is heating up again fast.
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