THE HIGGS FIELD
By Sébastien Cavernes, CIO Edmond de Rothschild Gestion (Monaco).
2025 is drawing to a close on yet another broadly positive note for almost all asset classes. Equities delivered strong gains and, this time, performance was not confined to the United States. European and emerging market equities also enjoyed an impressive run. The US dollar stands out as the main drag on performance. Market records, however, were once again set by gold, now trading nearly 70% above its end-2024 level, following what had already been a very strong year in 2024.
More recently, the entire precious metals complex has accelerated. Silver and platinum prices have doubled, and this momentum now appears to be spreading to industrial metals. Copper rose by 40% in 2025, with nearly two-thirds of that increase occurring in the final quarter of the year.
A rapid rise in commodity prices is often a signal of an accelerating investment cycle—and all indications suggest that 2026 will be no exception. Rearmament, reindustrialisation, automation, power infrastructure and, of course, the boom in artificial intelligence are converging into a large-scale CAPEX 1 cycle across developed economies and China alike.