New Delhi

Gold is expected to remain a key focus for investors in 2026 as markets navigate a mix of strong risk-asset performance and heightened uncertainty, according to Standard Chartered’s latest global outlook.

The bank said it continues to maintain an overweight position on gold, setting price targets of USD 4,350 per ounce over three months and USD 4,800 per ounce over 12 months. The outlook is underpinned by sustained demand from emerging market central banks and supportive macroeconomic conditions.

Standard Chartered expects the precious metal’s multi-year rally to continue, driven by ongoing central bank purchases, a softer US dollar and the renewed inverse relationship between gold prices and real bond yields. Elevated geopolitical tensions and macroeconomic risks are also reinforcing gold’s role as a portfolio hedge and diversification tool.

Although gold prices are currently at record highs in inflation-adjusted terms, the report noted that the metal remains relatively inexpensive when compared with global equities, particularly the US S&P 500. This assessment comes amid growing debate over whether equity valuations, fuelled largely by artificial intelligence-led optimism, are approaching bubble-like levels.

While the bank said current market conditions do not yet resemble past financial crises, it cautioned that widening dispersion across asset classes makes diversification increasingly important. In such an environment, gold is expected to provide stability if sentiment around growth assets weakens.

The report also highlighted that emerging market central banks continue to diversify their reserves away from the US dollar, with gold remaining their preferred alternative. This trend, it said, is far from complete and provides a steady, price-insensitive source of demand for the metal.

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Standard Chartered further expects the US dollar to weaken over the next six to 12 months as the Federal Reserve continues cutting interest rates and the US yield advantage narrows, a developm