Low-fee ETFs for precious-metal gains

Article Excerpt

Gold hit an all-time high of $1,577.50 U.S. an ounce in April, before moving down to today’s price of $1,527.50. Silver jumped to an all-time high of $49.76 U.S. before retreating sharply to $39.94. Gold and silver could well regain their highs and move up even further over the longer term, although they will likely remain volatile. Higher prices would arise from investor fears that inflation or global political and economic instability will weaken key currencies, such as the U.S. dollar. If you want to hold a number of gold or silver stocks, these two exchange-traded funds offer top-quality global miners and low fees. ISHARES S&P/TSX GLOBAL GOLD INDEX FUND $23.97 (Toronto symbol XGD; buy or sell through brokers; ca.ishares.com) aims to mirror the performance of the S&P/TSX Global Gold Index. This index is made up of gold stocks from Canada and around the world. The weight of any one company is capped at 25% of the index’s market capitalization. The fund’s MER is…