Stocks, gold and copper see big swings that show investors have few places to hide

By Joy Wiltermuth and Gordon Gottsegen Gold prices surge toward $5,600, then ease back Markets whipsawed on Thursday as all sorts of asset classes felt their fair share of volatility. U.S. stocks closed mixed on Thursday after a wild day on Wall Street in which metals surged, the price of oil spiked and a tug of war erupted in equities. Both stocks and metals are currently trading at or near all-time highs, but that only paints part of the picture. The volatility seen across asset classes on Thursday may give investors a hint at what's to come, and leave them with fewer places to hide. For the stock market, the cause of the craziness came out of earnings from some Big Tech companies. Shares of Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) and Meta Platforms Inc. (META) lurched in opposite directions on growing concerns about artificial-intelligence spending, and whether the money that companies are pouring into the AI race will lead to increased returns. "There are concerns that the investments they're making - whether it be building data centers or making acquisitions - are in response to AI threats," said Jed Ellerbroek, a portfolio manager at Argent Capital Management. "Investors question whether those investments will be successful." While the tumult left the S&P 500 index SPX only 0.1% lower, near record territory, the index has yet to successfully close above the 7,000 threshold. The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA gained 0.1% and the Nasdaq Composite Index COMP fell 0.7%, according to FactSet. Market volatility was felt in elsewhere too. Global oil prices (CL00) (CLH26) jolted to a six-month high on U.S. threats against Iran, while metals advanced their historic surge. The battered ICE U.S. Dollar Index DXY fell, keeping it near a four-year low. Yet it may be copper's (HG00) moves that truly reflect the day's gyrations. The below chart shows copper prices surging by about 11% around 9:30 a.m. in New York, but also the sharp drop after. The tumult swept up gold (GC00) and silver (SI00) prices too. Gold gained 6.1% at its intraday high, before falling to -3.4% at its low. That was its largest intraday swing since April 15, 2013, based on the most-active gold contract, according to Dow Jones Market Data. Read: Copper prices touch a record high as metals are going 'absolutely bonkers' right now "Specifically with gold, it's about as overstretched as it can possibly be," said Ryan Detrick, chief market strategist at Carson Group, in a phone interview. "To see some modest profit-taking isn't a big surprise." Central banks and individuals have been allocating to gold as a safe haven during periods of geopolitical instability, while silver and copper play a crucial role in industrialization and the AI race. Both factors have been important in January, making diversification harder to find in portfolios when volatility strikes, as it did Thursday. "The ability for metals to move separately from equities is more difficult now after a month of rotations from tech to materials," said Bob Savage, head of markets strategy at BNY. International tensions have been in the spotlight since the U.S. arrested Venezuela's president and renewed threats against Iran. There also were, briefly, the threat of new tariffs against European allies, and potential additional levies against Canada and South Korea. "This administration will push things to the limits, and if it has a severe impact, then they will adjust policy or their words as they see fit," said Mike Treacy, head market analyst at Apex. -Joy Wiltermuth -Gordon Gottsegen This content was created by MarketWatch, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. MarketWatch is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal. (END) Dow Jones Newswires 01-29-26 1741ET