Gold prices soared to a new all-time high of $4,136.62 per troy ounce on Monday, reaffirming the metal’s role as a global safe-haven asset amid political tensions, trade frictions between the United States and China, and heightened market volatility. The metal has gained 56 percent so far this year, marking its strongest performance since 1979.
According to Investing.com, gold futures rose more than $130 per ounce in a single day, pushing the metal’s total market capitalization to $27.7 trillion. Analysts attribute the surge to increased central bank demand, strong inflows into gold-backed ETFs, and growing expectations of interest rate cuts by the U.S. Federal Reserve.
In this favorable environment, El Salvador’s recent acquisition of 13,999 troy ounces of gold for $50 million is already paying off. The Central Reserve Bank (BCR) announced the purchase on September 4, raising the country’s reserves to 58,105 ounces—their highest level in decades. With the new price record, the value of those holdings now exceeds $240 million, generating an estimated unrealized gain of nearly $8 million.
“The Central Reserve Bank increased its gold holdings as part of a long-term strategy to diversify and strengthen international reserves,” the institution said in a statement, noting that it was El Salvador’s first gold purchase since 1990. The move aligns with the government’s broader policy of financial prudence and diversification in response to global uncertainty.
El Salvador also holds bitcoin reserves, which reached a value of about $799 million when the cryptocurrency hit $126,198 in early October. With profitable positions in both gold and bitcoin—the two top-performing assets of 2025—El Salvador continues to stand out as a pioneer in modern reserve management and monetary innovation.