Why Barrick Mining Stock Just Dropped
Key Points
Conflict in the Mideast initially drove gold prices higher, but they're falling today.
War can be inflationary, but it might also convince the Federal Reserve not to lower interest rates, thus restraining inflation.
- 10 stocks we like better than Barrick Mining ›
Barrick Mining Corporation (NYSE: B) stock tumbled 8.7% through 1:15 p.m. ET Tuesday. As you may have heard, there's war in the Mideast, and ordinarily, investors flee to gold and silver as safe havens in times like these. Indeed, at first that's what seemed to be happening.
Problem is, gold and silver prices are tanking today, and they're taking the stock price of this gold miner down with them. (Barrick also mines silver.)
Will AI create the world's first trillionaire? Our team just released a report on the one little-known company, called an "Indispensable Monopoly" providing the critical technology Nvidia and Intel both need. Continue »
Image source: Getty Images.
Gold and silver prices fall
Gold prices closed out February near $5,278 per ounce, according to data from TradingEconomics.com. Prices spiked after U.S. and Israeli forces began striking Iran over the weekend, rising as high as $5,416 early Monday before starting to fall.
At last report, gold was trading at $5,102 per ounce, down 3.9% from yesterday's close.
The story on silver is similar. Silver closed at $93.73 per ounce at the end of February before moving higher, topping $96.10 Monday. Today, silver is down 6.1% to $82.46 per ounce.
Is Barrick stock a sell?
Why is this happening? For one thing, the U.S. dollar -- also a safe haven -- is strengthening. Thus, it takes fewer dollars to buy an ounce of gold or silver. The natural result is falling prices for precious metals.
War can also be inflationary -- which should be good for precious metal prices. But if inflation convinces the Fed to hold interest rates steady, this could lower inflation long term -- or so the thinking goes.
Personally, I expect gold and silver prices to react to war worries the way they usually do. I think the general price trend will be up, not down. With Barrick stock trading just over 17 times earnings and expected to grow earnings nearly 16% next year, the stock looks close to being cheap enough to buy.
Should you buy stock in Barrick Mining right now?
Before you buy stock in Barrick Mining, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Barrick Mining wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $523,599!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,118,640!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 951% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 194% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
See the 10 stocks »
*Stock Advisor returns as of March 3, 2026.
Rich Smith has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Recommended Articles
