Gold mining stocks outperformed chipmakers' stocks in August. Who's in the black?

Shares of gold mining companies are soaring: their surge in August surpassed all recent performance figures for chipmakers' stocks, according to Bloomberg. At the same time, shares of chip suppliers remain among the most sought-after amid the artificial intelligence boom.

The MSCI Global Gold Miners Index rose 43% over the month: this could mark its largest monthly gain on record, according to Bloomberg. Even at the height of their rally, semiconductor stocks did not show such strong performance: the MSCI World Semiconductor Index and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index peaked in April, rising 27% and 38%, respectively, the agency noted.

Shares of Newmont, the world's largest gold producer, have risen more than 38% since the beginning of August; Agnico Eagle Mines shares have risen about 44%; and Wheaton Precious Metals shares have risen about 40%.

The rally in gold mining stocks began after the U.S. Treasury announced that it would double the maximum volume of government debt buybacks. This revived so-called "depreciation trading"—betting that currencies, including the dollar, will continue to lose value, driving investors toward alternative assets such as gold, Bloomberg explained.

The price of gold itself jumped 13% in August, exceeding $4,600 per troy ounce. Investors flocked to the rally: according to Bloomberg, gold-backed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) saw their largest inflow since September 2025.

“From an equity perspective, gold is one of our top priorities,” Tomasz Godzek, head of equities at Bank J. Safra Sarasin, told Bloomberg. He supports the idea of a weaker dollar but also views gold as a strategic asset that central banks can use to diversify their reserves.

Matthew Xi, head of sales and market strategy for the Asia-Pacific region at JPMorgan Chase, favors large mining companies such as Zijin Mining Group, which rose 14% over the past month, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong fell by 1%. The analyst also expects other precious metals, including platinum, to rise amid the growing market cycle.

"If hyperscalers (the largest cloud service providers. — Oninvest) maintain profitability and convince investors that capital expenditures will translate into future profits, I would be less confident in betting that gold miners will continue to outperform the market,” said Kaya Parv, market strategist at First Degree Global Asset Management. Tech stocks came under pressure amid rising bond yields and growing doubts that massive investments in artificial intelligence will pay off, the agency explains. However, Nvidia’s strong sales forecast, released this week, helped reassure investors by showing that growth in the AI sector remains robust.

In the long term, investors remain optimistic about gold: limited supply, steady purchases by central banks, and strong capital inflows are all factors working in its favor. Investors are now awaiting signals from the upcoming speech by Fed Chair Kevin Warsh to gauge where the bear market will head next, according to Bloomberg.

"Inflows into ETFs are often the main driver of bullion prices, and the recent resumption of investment growth indicates that investors are increasingly seeking to protect their portfolios amid fiscal, geopolitical, and macroeconomic uncertainty,” — says Fahad Tariq, equity strategist at Jefferies Group.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor