Guess which ASX ETF is up 13% so far this week?

The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has had a pretty decent week so far, bar today’s miserly performance. Since the end of last week’s trading, the ASX 200 has gained a healthy 1% or so. So it may be surprising to find out that one ASX exchange-traded fund (ETF) has risen by a whopping 13% over the same period. That ETF is none other than the VanEck Gold Miners ETF (ASX: GDX).

This ETF from provider VanEck does what it suggests on the tin: invests in a portfolio of gold mining shares.

But not just ASX gold miners. Sure, you will find Newcrest Mining Ltd (ASX: NCM), Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST), and some other ASX peers. But this fund holds gold miners from all around the world. More than 50% of its weighted portfolio is actually held in Canadian miners.

A further 20% hail from the United States. As such, it is other names like Newmont Corp, Barrick Gold, and Wheaton Precious Metals that dominate the VanEck Gold Miners ETF”s portfolio.

Overall, this ETF has 49 underlying holdings within it.

So why has the VanEck Gold Miners ETF had such a cracking week?

Why has the Vaneck Gold Miners ETF soared 13% this week?

Well, for an ETF to rise like this, its underlying companies usually have to be rising in value as well. And lo and behold, we see that Newmont, the fund’s largest holding, is up by 5.7% over the week so far. Barrick Gold is up around 8%, a similar amount to Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN). This is largely thanks to the price of gold itself appreciating over this period.

Further, since most of the VanEck Gold Miners ETF’s holdings are domiciled outside Australia, the value of the fund is also influenced by currency movements. Over the past week, we have also seen the Australian dollar drop against the US dollar. This would boost the returns of this ETF even further. That’s because most of the companies are priced in non-Australian dollar terms.

So all of these factors probably explain why the VanEck Gold Miners ETF has had such a stellar run this week. But despite this, the ETF remains down by around 5.6% this year to date.

The post Guess which ASX ETF is up 13% so far this week? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Here are the 3 most traded ASX 200 shares on Thursday
• Can ASX 200 gold share Evolution Mining really surge another 30% on top of recent gains?
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Thursday
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• Here are the 3 most traded ASX 200 shares on Wednesday

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has positions in Newcrest Mining Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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