Here’s what a Trump victory could do to the price of gold
Controversial US presidential candidate Donald Trump's ascendance to the White House would be good for gold, as his policies are likely be bad news for the US economy.
To-date, Trump has launched verbal assaults on big corporations, as well as large mergers and acquisitions, and most recently threatened to pull the US out of the World Trade Organisation.
Analysts at Dutch investment bank ABN Amro think his proposals would be toned down once he's in office. But they said international trade growth and outside investment into the country would still be hit.
Gold could soar towards $1,850 per ounce if the Republican enters the White House. That's about a 40 per cent jump from its current level of $1,321 an ounce.
If Trump were to become president … gold prices will likely perform well, because we expect that his policies will be inward looking and will weaken the fundamentals of the US economy.
In addition, his rhetoric and possibly policy actions could create domestic and international uncertainty at best, and upheaval at worst.
The price of bullion would also rise if Hilary Clinton wins the presidential race. Nevertheless, it would be a milder gain of around 25 per cent to $1,650 an ounce.
"Despite uncertainty on financial markets we don't expect a new major crisis in the making. As a result, safe haven flows towards gold are likely to be muted," ABN said.
Both of these would be dwarfed by the presidency of Jimmy Carter when gold swelled 338.5 per cent from 1977 to 1981. This era was mired by a profound economic crisis, which sent investors into the safe-haven asset.
