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Gold Could See $7,000 Next: Here’s How to Trade It
Gold is hitting record highs and the move is no longer a quiet grind. In late January 2026, gold pushed through the psychologically important $5,000 level, printing fresh records as investors responded to a mix of geopolitical risk and macro uncertainty.
That matters because breakouts at round-number levels often shift investor behavior. When gold is rising steadily, buyers tend to be patient. When gold starts setting repeated record highs, buyers tend to move faster... and sidelined capital tends to re-engage.
The big call: $7,000 gold is now on the table
Until recently, much of the “bull case” chatter centered around $5,000 gold as a major upside target. Now, the narrative is stretching.
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SAMCO Securities has argued gold could rise toward $7,000/oz, citing persistent geopolitical uncertainty, structurally higher fiscal deficits, resilient central bank demand, and a supportive real interest rate backdrop.
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Jefferies’ Chris Wood has also floated $6,600/oz as a reasonable long-term target, framing it as consistent with historical peaks when adjusted for income growth.
Will gold hit those levels quickly? No one can promise a timeline. Gold never moves in a straight line, and sharp rallies are often followed by sharp shakeouts. But the more important point for investors is this: the upside case is broadening, and the market is now treating gold as more than a short-term fear trade.
Why miners can move more than gold
If you want exposure to higher gold prices, you can always buy physical gold or a bullion ETF. But there’s a reason many investors pivot to miners during strong gold uptrends:
When gold rises, miners’ revenue per ounce rises immediately, but many of their costs (labor, energy contracts, long-term capex) adjust more slowly. That can expand operating margins and free cash flow—creating a form of embedded leverage to gold prices.
The tradeoff is that miners add risks gold itself doesn’t have: operating performance, jurisdictional risk, reserve replacement, cost inflation, and equity market volatility. That’s why using diversified ETFs—rather than a single mining stock—can be a more controlled way to express the thesis.
With that in mind, here are three practical, diversified ways to position for further upside.
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ETF: VanEck Gold Miners ETF (SYM: GDX)
The “blue-chip miner basket”
If you want broad exposure to established global producers, GDX is often the first stop.
Why it’s useful: GDX holds many of the world’s largest and most liquid gold miners. That typically means stronger balance sheets, better access to capital, and more diversified operations than the average small-cap miner.
Cost: VanEck lists GDX’s expense ratio at 0.51%.
What you own: A diversified portfolio across major gold miners. Recent holdings data shows top positions including Agnico Eagle Mines, Newmont, Barrick, and Wheaton Precious Metals among the largest weights.
How to think about it:
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If gold keeps grinding higher, GDX can participate strongly.
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If gold chops sideways, miners can still perform if margins expand or costs stabilize—but they can also lag if operating costs rise faster than realized prices.
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If the overall equity market sells off hard, miners often get dragged down with it (even when gold holds up), because they are still equities.
Who it fits: Investors who want gold-related equity exposure but prefer the relative stability of larger producers versus exploration-stage companies.
ETF: Sprott Junior Gold Miners ETF (SYM: SGDJ)
More torque, more volatility
If GDX is the “large-cap miner” expression, SGDJ is the higher-octane version.
Objective and approach: SGDJ seeks to track the Solactive Junior Gold Miners Custom Factors Index, focusing on smaller-cap gold companies, with a rules-based process designed to emphasize certain factor characteristics (including revenue growth for producers and momentum for explorers, per the fund description).
Cost: Sprott lists SGDJ’s net total expense ratio at 0.50%.
Why juniors can outperform in bull cycles: Junior miners and developers often react more aggressively to rising gold prices because:
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their valuations can be more sensitive to changes in project economics, and
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investors re-rate “optionality” when the underlying commodity is making new highs.
The risk: Juniors can also fall much harder during pullbacks. Liquidity is thinner, financing risk is higher, and single-asset company exposure is more common. In other words, SGDJ can deliver more upside torque—but it requires discipline on sizing.
Who it fits: Investors with higher risk tolerance who want amplified exposure to gold’s upside, but still want ETF diversification rather than picking a single junior miner.
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ETF: Global X Gold Explorers ETF (SYM: GOEX)
The “discovery and development” angle
If your view is that gold’s move is early-cycle and could spark a renewed investment boom in discovery, GOEX targets companies involved in gold exploration and development.
Objective: Global X states GOEX seeks results corresponding to the Solactive Global Gold Explorers & Developers index.
Cost: GOEX lists a total expense ratio of 0.65%.
Holdings: GOEX’s top holdings include names such as Hecla Mining, Eldorado Gold, New Gold, Coeur Mining, Lundin Gold, and others (holdings change over time).
Dividends: GOEX distributes semi-annually, per Global X. (Note: explorer-heavy portfolios tend to have less consistent income than mature miners; distributions can vary year to year.)
Who it fits: Investors who want exposure to the higher-risk, higher-upside “discovery/development” part of the gold cycle—again, with the important benefit of diversification.
A simple way to pick the right tool
Think of these three ETFs as a risk ladder:
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GDX = lower volatility relative to gold equities, large-cap producers, “core” miner exposure
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SGDJ = higher torque to gold, junior bias, more volatility
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GOEX = exploration/development tilt, potentially the most volatile, most sensitive to risk-on/risk-off swings
If your goal is simply to participate in gold’s uptrend with fewer single-company risks, many investors start with GDX, then add smaller allocations to SGDJ or GOEX only if they want more upside convexity.
What to watch next
Even in a bullish environment, gold can correct sharply. The cleanest tell is not day-to-day headlines—it’s whether gold can hold above prior breakout levels (like $5,000) during pullbacks. If it can, the uptrend remains intact. If it fails decisively, miners—especially juniors and explorers—can retrace fast.
