Gold, silver outshine share market; give better returns

Gold and silver have given better returns to investors so far this year by surging up to 28%, compared to stocks which showed gains of under 8%.

Gold and silver prices have surged by 19.77% and 28.37% up to October 10 this year.

On the other hand, the 30-share barometer Sensex rose by just 7.52% during this period. The index touched its 52-week high of 29,077.28 on September 8, 2016.

However, from its all-time high of 30,024.74, attained on March 4, 2015, the index is down 1,942.4 points or 6.46%.

Gold prices rose to Rs 30,410 per 10 grams from Rs 25,390 on December 31, 2015, while silver to Rs 42,750 per kg from Rs 33,300 per kg.

Earlier in the year, sentiment in the market was hit mostly by volatility in crude oil prices and worries over the health of the Chinese economy.

However, the post-Budget rally in the stock market in March helped cushion some of the losses.

On monthly basis, the 30-share index has gained since March onwards sans September.

As per market experts, gold outperformed other asset classes during weak markets as investors are driven by the safe haven syndrome. Data shows that gold has given positive returns in 12 out of the last 15 years.

In a double-whammy for investors, however, the two major asset classes - stocks and gold - had failed to generate positive returns last year.

In 2014, the stock markets had outperformed gold and silver for the third year in a row with much better returns for investors.