Greetings!,

Do you, or have you, ever thought about investing in gold? We get asked this question from time to time.

In full disclosure, I have never purchased physical gold myself. Karen has some silver coins and a bar that was her father's, but I feel we hold these more as a keepsake rather than an investment. However, I have held shares of precious metal ETFs, or "mining stocks."

For me, some of the disadvantages of holding a physical asset like gold or silver are these:



• You have to store it someplace.
• You may not be able to readily convert it to cash if needed.
• It does not pay a dividend.
• It can be very volatile.

This week, in the update we get from J.P. Morgan, gold was discussed again. Their thoughts on the precious metal is this:

"After three consecutive years of double-digit gains, including

an eye-popping 65% in 2025, investor appetite for gold has never been higher. In recent years, demand for gold has accelerated amid concerns about long-term U.S. fiscal health, geopolitical tensions, inflation and U.S. dollar weakness. This backdrop has prompted central banks, institutions and individual investors to seek diversification by hedging against heightened macro uncertainty. Robust demand and inelastic supply—global above-ground stocks have only grown by an average of 1.5-2% per year—have continued to push prices higher.

While central bank demand for gold has softened in recent quarters, it remains elevated relative to pre-2022 levels and continues to anchor the positive outlook that many analysts hold for the metal. However, any gap left by central banks has been filled by rising demand from institutional and

individual investors. The $19bn in inflows to gold ETFs in January 2026 was the highest monthly total in history. Coupled with a 14% gain in

gold prices, the assets under management (AUM) of global

gold ETFs reached a record $669bn at the end of January. This follows nearly $89bn in inflows to gold ETFs in 2025—the highest annual total on record.

Investors should be mindful of gold’s characteristics when

considering adding the metal to their portfolios. Gold can be highly volatile, its opportunity cost is driven by interest rates and it does not generate income. Investors seeking less-volatile, income-focused alternatives may want to

consider real estate, private infrastructure and transportation

investments. "

We do not work with commodities or physical assets. However, if you would like to discuss this area or investing, or alternatives, please give us a call.

As always, thanks for reading.



Bernie & Chad