Gold can continue to rally as private investors increasingly look to the precious metal as an equity hedge, according to JPMorgan. Individual investors could increase their gold exposure to 4.6% of an average portfolio from 3%, managing director Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou told clients in a Wednesday report. Such an increase would imply a price of between $8,000 and $8,500 an ounce for the precious metal, he said. Gold set a new record near $5,600 an ounce before retreating on Thursday , one month after gold saw the largest annual increase in 2025 since 1979. The price of the yellow metal has soared as investors have sought a safe-haven asset amid rising geopolitical tensions and as central banks around the world have bought large amounts of gold in an attempt to diversify their dollar-heavy reserve holdings. "The allocations to gold by both private investors and central banks continue to grind higher," Panigirtzoglou wrote. "We continue to see more upside over the coming years." @GC.1 1Y mountain Gold, 1-year Panigirtzoglou's $8,000-$8,500 price range implies gold could climb more than 40% from current levels. He said households have been replacing long-duration bond holdings with gold, a trend he predicted is likely to continue. Data also suggests that gold has been favored over bitcoin by retail traders , Panigirtzoglou said. But momentum traders have driven prices far into overbought territory for both gold and silver , Panigirtzoglou said. That raises the risk of profit taking or a mean reversion in the near term, he added. What's more, gold has recently shown "more robust liquidity and market breadth" than either silver or bitcoin.
