Bank for International Settlements Warns of a 'Double Bubble' in Gold and Stocks

It's not just stocks where a bubble might be forming.TipRanks Cyber Monday Sale Claim 60% off TipRanks Premium for data-backed insights and research tools you need to invest with confidence. Subscribe to TipRanks' Smart Investor Picks and see our data in action through our high-performing model portfolio - now also 60% off The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) is sounding the alarm on what it calls a "double bubble" that's forming in both stocks and gold. Economists at the BIS note in a new paper that the combination of gold and share prices soaring in unison is a phenomenon that has not occurred in at least half a century. The BIS, which is a global umbrella organization for the world's central banks, says that while equity markets continue to surge on anything related to artificial intelligence (AI), the 60% rise in gold's price this year is set to be its biggest since 1979. Gold has been running higher alongside stocks due largely to robust buying on the part of central banks that are purchasing the precious metal as a safe-haven asset. Potential Danger for Investors "Gold has behaved very differently this year compared to its usual pattern," writes Hyun Song Shin, Head of the Monetary and Economic Department at the BIS, in the institution's final report of 2025. "The interesting phenomenon this time has been that gold has become much more like a speculative asset." Dubbed the central bank to the world's central banks, the Bank for International Settlements has given regular warnings over the years about potential stock market bubbles and the potential dangers for investors. But now, the BIS warns that dangers to investors are two-fold, a bubble in stocks and gold. The BIS' analysis determines that this year has been the first time that gold and the benchmark S&P 500 index have jointly exhibited "explosive behavior" in the last 50 years. The report concludes by asking where investors will shelter if stocks and gold both crash at the same time? Is The SPDR Gold Shares ETF a Buy? Most analysts don't rate the SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) exchange-traded fund (ETF). So instead, we'll look at its year-to-date performance. As one can see below, the GLD ETF has risen 60% this year, mirroring the price of the precious metal that it tracks.