With polls showing both major presidential candidates virtually tied after an intense campaign season, you might be hesitant to make any major moves for your portfolio ahead of next week’s election. And while I understand this hesitation, I don’t share it. Not just because I firmly believe it’s always better to act before something happens rather than after, but also because I’ve seen the numbers and believe that no matter who wins the 2024 presidential election, the real winner will be physical gold.
Issues such as the national debt will likely persist no matter who wins the presidency.
One glaring example of an issue that won’t go away no matter who wins next week is the rapidly growing national debt, which has already surpassed $35 trillion. According to The Wall Street Journal, both major presidential candidates have led or been part of administrations that increased the national debt. And according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, both candidates’ economic plans would continue that trend by at least several trillion dollars.
The national debt isn’t the only issue that seems unlikely to be resolved after the election, regardless of the winner. As U.S. Money Reserve’s Director of Education Brad Chastain recently wrote, pressures on Americans’ finances, the divisive political climate, problems in the banking system, and other issues are also likely to continue well into the next administration.
As economic and other issues persist, gold continues to rise.
In the past 12 months, gold has reached new all-time highs more than 30 times—and that streak looks poised to continue no matter who wins in November. Gold has risen very sharply partly because the issues mentioned above have driven many to explore the benefits of safe-haven assets, but other factors are also driving the current rally—and these are likely to continue.
For example, factors such as the voracious demand for gold from central banks and red-hot political tensions overseas are expected to continue driving gold prices into 2025 and beyond. Even institutions like Goldman Sachs and Citibank predict that the precious metal’s price will continue to rise.
In good times or bad, gold has a proven track record of growth and protection.
While many factors not expected to change could boost demand and prices for precious metals, I want to end by explaining how gold benefits even when things do change.
Just as we can’t know the results of the election, we also don’t know what other surprises the future may hold. The future, as they say, is unwritten, so if we want to be truly prepared, it is worth considering both a future where the economy is doing well and one where it isn’t.
During gold’s recent rally, its prices have risen on both good and bad economic news, as well as when inflation has been on the rise and when it has fallen. Gold prices have also grown over the past several decades regardless of which political party held the White House.
No matter what November or the years ahead may bring, analysts and financial news headlines seem to agree: The days ahead look bright for physical gold.
