Why gold funds are set to shine even brighter
Saltydog Investor looks into the funds benefiting from the rising gold price, and makes the case that mining companies are set to rise further.
14th April 2025 14:02
by Douglas Chadwick from ii contributor
This content is provided by Saltydog Investor. It is a third-party supplier and not part of interactive investor. It is provided for information only and does not constitute a personal recommendation.
In the final quarter of 2024, funds from six different sectors made it into our list of top 10 funds. However, they were all predominantly invested in the US and most were also heavily exposed to the Technology sector. Five were from the North America sector, three were from the Technology & Technology Innovation sector, and two were from the Financial & Financial Innovation sector. At the top of the list was the Baillie Gifford American fund with a three-month return of 19.7%.
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In January, the Baillie Gifford American fund featured again but it was down in 10th place, even though it had posted a 9.9% one-month return. It was the only fund from either the North American or Technology sectors to make it into the top 10. There were four funds from the Specialist sector, three from the Latin America sector, one from the Financial & Financial Innovation sector, and one from the Europe excluding UK sector. The best-performing funds were the Gold funds from the Specialist sector. The BlackRock Gold and General fund was at the top of the list, having gained 16.6% over the month.
The following month it was all change again. There were no Specialist, North American, or Technology funds in the table. It was a clean sweep for the China/Greater China sector, with the HSBC GIF Chinese Equity fund leading the way with a 10.2% gain.
Last month, Gold funds were back in the limelight. The Ninety One Global Gold fund was in first place, posting a one-month return of 14.9%. The WS Ruffer Gold, SVS Sanlam Global Gold & Resources, and BlackRock Gold & General funds were close behind. There were also three funds from the India/Indian Subcontinent sector, one fund from the Europe excluding UK sector, and one fund from the Commodities & Natural Resources sector in the mix.
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Over the quarter, gold funds have the edge. The leading fund, Ninety One Global Gold, has risen by over 30% in the last three months, and the other gold funds are up over 25%.
Saltydog’s top 10 funds in Q1 2025
| Fund Name | Jan % return | Feb % return | Mar %return | 3-month return |
| Ninety One Global Gold | 16.1 | -1.5 | 14.9 | 31.3 |
| BlackRock Gold and General | 16.6 | -0.5 | 9.7 | 27.3 |
| SVS Sanlam Global Gold & Resources | 13.1 | 0.9 | 10.4 | 26.0 |
| WS Ruffer Gold | 12.3 | -0.6 | 12.2 | 25.3 |
| Artemis SmartGARP European Equity | 6.6 | 4.0 | 4.7 | 16.1 |
| Barings German Growth | 8.5 | 3.5 | 1.6 | 14.0 |
| WS Ardtur Continental European | 7.5 | 3.8 | 1.5 | 13.3 |
| Baillie Gifford China | 4.2 | 9.1 | -1.5 | 12.0 |
| Janus Henderson China Opportunities | 1.0 | 10.0 | 0.1 | 11.2 |
| Jupiter China | 0.8 | 8.4 | 1.7 | 11.2 |
Data source: Morningstar. Past performance is not a guide to future performance.
The Gold funds have also risen in April, despite a shaky start, with the Ninety One Global Gold fund already gaining more than 5%.
Past performance is not a guide to future performance.
One of the things that investors really do not like is uncertainty, and that is certainly something that we have seen plenty of so far this year. Recently, we have seen volatility rise to levels comparable with some of the biggest crashes in modern history: Black Monday, the dot-com collapse, the global financial crisis, and the Covid pandemic.
Markets are torn between relief over easing inflation and anxiety about a recession brought on by a global trade war. During his campaign, Donald Trump said he would impose tariffs on US imports, but he did not give details on exactly what they would be or how far he was willing to go. Since returning to office, we have seen a flurry of executive orders - some taking effect immediately, others delayed, and some lifted altogether.
The most significant were announced at the beginning of April on what he called “Liberation Day”, when tariffs were extended to all countries.
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Over the following two days, the major US indices dropped by more than 10%. It was only the fourth time that the Nasdaq has seen two days of back-to-back losses of more than 5%. The others were in 1987, on Black Monday and the following Tuesday; in 2001, at the height of the dot-com crash; and in 2008, during the Global Financial Crisis.
Volatility reached levels not seen since the Covid pandemic. Then, just as quickly, markets bounced. Trump announced a 90-day suspension of tariffs for countries that had not retaliated, and the S&P 500 jumped by 9.5% - its third-largest one-day gain since the Second World War.
During times of extreme volatility, investors often head for “safe-haven” assets, one of which is gold. That has happened in recent months, and the price of gold has gone on to new all-time highs.
The gold funds that we track invest in companies that mine and process gold, and so their performance does not exactly track the gold price, but they are closely correlated. As I pointed out a couple of weeks ago, the gold price has actually risen faster than the price of the funds, and so they may still have some catching up to do.
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These articles are provided for information purposes only. Occasionally, an opinion about whether to buy or sell a specific investment may be provided by third parties. The content is not intended to be a personal recommendation to buy or sell any financial instrument or product, or to adopt any investment strategy as it is not provided based on an assessment of your investing knowledge and experience, your financial situation or your investment objectives. The value of your investments, and the income derived from them, may go down as well as up. You may not get back all the money that you invest. The investments referred to in this article may not be suitable for all investors, and if in doubt, an investor should seek advice from a qualified investment adviser.
Full performance can be found on the company or index summary page on the interactive investor website. Simply click on the company's or index name highlighted in the article.