Gold surged to historic highs then experienced a sharp correction at the start of 2026.

Now, with gold trading in a volatile and undecided pattern near the $5,000 per ounce level, investors face a familiar question:

Is the bull market over or is this consolidation before the next leg higher?

We address that directly in the newly-released 2026 Gold Outlook Report.

Gold didn’t go up. The dollar went down.

There is no gold bull market without a dollar bear market. One is the mirror image of the other.

As we explain in our 2026 Gold Outlook Report:

“We remain bearish on the dollar, with no particular end in sight. In other words, we expect the gold price to continue to rise.”

Measured in gold, the dollar has declined steadily for decades. In 1996, one dollar bought more than 120 milligrams of gold. Today, it buys less than 10.

The structural forces behind that decline have not been resolved. Debt continues to compound. Monetary credibility continues to erode.

The question is not whether volatility will occur. It is whether the underlying monetary trend has changed.

Download the full Gold Outlook 2026 report for free here.

The buy-or-sell framework is obsolete 

Investors understand the risk of holding dollars. That is why gold ownership has expanded.

But at current price levels, hesitation is natural. New buyers worry about buying a top. Existing holders hesitate to sell into structural instability.

The default advice of “just hold” assumes that wealth preservation alone is sufficient.

In a period of prolonged inflation, high interest rates, or rallying equities, that can be a costly assumption.

Capital that does not compound loses relative ground over time, even if its nominal value rises. 

Preservation of capital matters but productivity of capital can matter even more.

Gold no longer must sit idle

For most of modern financial history, gold has been treated as inert insurance—useful in crises, but otherwise unproductive. That framework no longer reflects reality.

Today, physical gold can function as productive capital in the real economy. Gold can be leased to operating businesses and earn a return, paid in additional ounces of gold while remaining physical metal.

At Monetary Metals, we facilitate this through gold leasing arrangements that pay a yield on gold, in gold. The metal is deployed productively, and the return is measured in ounces—not dollars.

Title, ownership, and gold price exposure remain, but without the drag of storage fees, insurance costs, or ounces sitting idle.

Is the bull run in gold and silver still on?

In the 2026 Gold Outlook Report, we examine:

• The structural drivers behind gold’s long-term trend
• Whether current price action signals exhaustion or consolidation
• The monetary dynamics that matter more than short-term volatility
• How investors can earn a return on gold regardless of price direction

Download the free 2026 Gold Outlook Report and learn how to position your gold to grow, not just sit, in today’s monetary environment.

Download the full Gold Outlook 2026 report for free here.