New York, January 9, 2026, 10:06 EST — Regular session
- Barrick Mining shares traded higher early Friday as bullion prices held near record levels.
- U.S. payrolls data and rate expectations kept the dollar and gold in focus.
- Barrick’s Feb. 5 results are the next company catalyst for bullion-linked stocks.
Barrick Mining shares rose 0.7% to $47.78 by 10:06 a.m. EST, as investors stayed parked in gold-linked names after a steep run in the metal.
The setup matters right now because gold trades are being driven as much by rates and the dollar as by demand for jewelry or bars. For miners, a small move in the gold price can change margins quickly, and the market has been jumpy.
U.S. nonfarm payrolls — the Labor Department’s monthly snapshot of hiring — rose 50,000 in December, below forecasts, while the unemployment rate eased to 4.4%, Reuters reported. Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Spartan Capital Securities, called it “not too hot, not too cold.” Reuters
Spot gold was steady at $4,473.79 an ounce as of 11:58 GMT and headed for a weekly gain of more than 3% after hitting a record $4,549.71 on Dec. 26. “Gold remains in standby mode,” said Lukman Otunuga, a senior research analyst at FXTM, pointing to an appreciating dollar as a cap. Reuters
Flows into gold-backed ETFs — exchange-traded funds that hold physical metal — underline how sticky demand has been. The World Gold Council said global gold ETFs drew $89 billion of inflows in 2025, lifting assets under management (AUM) to a record $559 billion, with holdings at 4,025 tonnes.
Barrick has its own date on the calendar. The miner said on Jan. 7 it will release full-year and fourth-quarter 2025 results on Feb. 5 before markets open, followed by a management webcast and analyst Q&A later that morning.
Peers were mixed in early trade. Newmont slipped about 0.2%, while Agnico Eagle rose about 1.2%; Wheaton Precious Metals added about 0.6% and Franco-Nevada gained about 2.2%.
But the gold story is not one-way. HSBC said gold could hit $5,000 an ounce in the first half of 2026, while warning that rising prices could still set up a correction later in the year if geopolitical risks cool or if the Federal Reserve stops cutting rates.
Traders will be watching how bullion behaves as markets reprice the Fed path after the payrolls data. For Barrick investors, the next hard catalyst is Feb. 5, when the company reports results and updates guidance.
