Gold rally has legs - banks lift upside targets to $6,000 and $7,000
Published: 10:01 27 Jan 2026 EST
As gold prices surged past $5,000 an ounce in early 2026, major banks raise their upside forecasts as they reassessed the scale and sustainability of the rally for the safe haven metal.
Deutsche Bank now sees gold reaching $6,000/oz, driven by rising investment demand and a fundamental shift in the geopolitical and macroeconomic backdrop.
Michael Hsueh, commodities strategist at the bank, said the environment of heightened geopolitical fragmentation, higher defence spending and increased resource stockpiling supports a long-term case for gold.
“We expect these may dominate in importance over the macroeconomic climate,” he said, pointing to increased allocations to real assets and non-dollar reserves.
RBC also turned more bullish, with strategist Christopher Louney saying gold has already exceeded his expected high-end scenario for early 2026 and momentum could mirror the 65% annual gains seen in 2025.
RBC’s revised high-end scenario now sees gold averaging $5,203/oz in Q4, with potential for prices to push as high as $7,100/oz by year-end if last year’s rally pace repeats.
Investor and central bank demand remains strong, Louney noted, with no signs of exhaustion.
"Based on all our conversations in the first few weeks of the year, we do not think investor or central bank demand will fall away, with more tonnage added in our ETP database, and central banks still in the buying camp in search of diversification."
He noted that three historical rallies in the late 1970s, 2007 to 2011, and a five-year move up to mid-2020, a rally of 1,062-1168 days is not without precedent, and we are currently around 844 days into this current upswing.
"Similar major rallies of the past point to early September or mid-December (essentially the end of the year) based on duration alone."
But, he added, "given the nature of gold, this is not a hard limit to the rally."
