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29 August 2025
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A second quarter of significant investment in gold-backed ETFs, along with elevated bar and coin buying, drove total Q2 gold demand up 3% y/y to 1,249t. Meanwhile, jewellery consumption weakened further in the face of record gold prices.
Gold rose 26% in H1 2025, outpacing major asset classes. As we look forward, consensus expectations of macroeconomic drivers suggest that gold may remain range-bound in H2 with the possibility of some upside.
Key factors that have fuelled gold’s price rise in 2025 include the spectre of US tariffs, geopolitical uncertainty, stock market volatility and US dollar weakness. A sharp revival in gold ETF inflows led to a more-than-doubling of total investment demand for the quarter.
Gold demand hit a new record in 2024 on the back of central bank buying, continued growth in AI adoption, investment and gold bar purchasing, while annual jewellery consumption was down reflecting cost-of-living pressures.
As we look to 2025, all eyes are focused on what Trump’s second term may mean for the global economy. Thrill-seeking investors may benefit from an early wave of risk-on flows, but potential trade wars and inflationary forces may spill over into an expected subpar economic growth.
Total gold demand gained 5% y/y to 1,313t. This strength was reflected in the gold price, which reached a series of new record highs during the quarter. The value of demand jumped 35% y/y to exceed US$100bn for the first time ever.
An explosion in low-skilled migration to Australia has depressed wages, killed productivity, and cut rental vacancy rates to near decades-lows. It’s time both sides of politics addressed the issue.
This AI cycle feels less like a revolution and more like a rerun. Just like fibre in 2000, shale in 2014, and cannabis in 2019, the technology or product is real but the capital cycle will be brutal. Investors beware.
Australian housing’s 50-year boom was driven by falling rates and rising borrowing power — not rent or yield. With those drivers exhausted, future returns must reconcile with economic fundamentals. Are we ready?
Despite mixed ASX results, the market has shown surprising resilience. With rate cuts ahead and economic conditions improving, investors should look beyond short-term noise and position for a potential cyclical upswing.
BWT Trust has moved to bring management in house. Meanwhile, many of the properties it leases to Bunnings have been repriced to materially higher rents. This has removed two of the key 'snags' holding back the stock.
With APRA phasing out bank hybrids from 2027, investors must reassess these complex instruments. A synthetic hybrid strategy may offer similar returns but with greater control and clearer understanding of risks.
The magnitude of founder Jensen Huang’s selldown may seem small, but the signal is hard to ignore. When the person with the clearest insight into the company’s future starts cashing out, it’s worth asking why.