US investors rush into Gold ETFs

As recently as January 2025, North America was the only region in the world to see significant outflows from gold ETCs (exchange-traded funds). The overall situation has, however, changed dramatically. US investors are currently realigning their portfolios in response to their new administration’s highly unpredictable economic policy, investing heavily in foreign stocks and bonds – and, of course, gold. The largest US gold fund, SPDR Gold Shares, has seen inflows of over 58 tonnes in recent weeks, including more than US$2 billion in investments on 24 March 2025 alone, according to the financial news portal etf.com.

European gold ETCs and Asian gold funds also see investments surge

US gold funds lead global net inflows with demand up to 123 tonnes since the beginning of the year, according to the latest World Gold Council data. The runners-up: European physically backed ETCs (exchange-traded commodities), which grew by 53.6 tonnes, and Asian gold ETFs with 27.4 tonnes. Global gold holdings in ETFs rose by 214.8 tonnes but also saw outflows of 7.7 tonnes – an overall net increase of 6 per cent. By comparison, in December 2024, gold holdings around the globe were down, with the exception of Asia. The bottom line was minimal growth of 0.1 per cent.

Xetra-Gold leads inflows among eurozone gold securities

The strongest new investments in gold funds in 2025 were the above mentioned SDSR Gold Shares, followed by the iShares Gold Trust and SDSR Gold MiniShares Trust (both also listed in the US), and UK-based iShares Physical Gold ETC. In terms of new investment volume, these gold products are followed by the Xetra-Gold bearer bond, which intermittently had seen more outflows than inflows. However, over the course of 2025 to date, Xetra-Gold has increased its gold holdings by 7.9 tonnes, or 4.7 per cent. In terms of investments in gold funds, Xetra-Gold thus ranks fifth worldwide and first in the eurozone.

What’s the impact of Trump tariffs, inflation, US dollar on the gold price?

How physically backed gold funds and ETCs will develop in 2025 depends heavily on the geopolitical hot spots and the looming threat of trade wars. Inflation expectations and the strength of the US dollar will also play a role. Accordingly, analysts’ most recent gold price forecasts are mixed: anything seems possible, from soaring to 4,000 US$ per troy ounce to a noticeable downward correction to 2,500 US$.