Bank of America maintained a 12-month gold price target of $6,000 per troy ounce as of May 2026, with a silver price forecast averaging $86 per ounce for the full year, according to Kitco News. The bank's commodity analysts reiterated the target even after gold pulled back from its January high of $5,405 per ounce.

The World Bank offered a more conservative 2026 forecast, projecting gold prices to average around $4,700 per ounce for the year, a 37 percent increase from 2025 levels, with silver averaging approximately $70 per ounce, a 76 percent increase from 2025 averages. The divergence between institutional forecasts reflects genuine uncertainty about whether gold has entered a structurally new price range or whether current prices represent an extended cyclical peak.

A Kitco survey conducted in late 2025 found that 57 percent of retail investors expected silver to trade above $100 per ounce during 2026. Analyst consensus has been more measured, with most institutional estimates placing 2026 silver in a range between $70 and $90 per ounce.

Gold's role as a reserve asset has been reinforced by sustained central bank buying, which reached 244 tonnes in the first quarter of 2026 alone. The simultaneous strength in physical investment demand, ETF inflows through most of the prior year, and elevated jewelry spending despite high prices suggests the current bull market in gold has multiple reinforcing demand drivers rather than a single speculative catalyst.

Source: Kitco News -- https://www.kitco.com/news/article/2026-05-01/bank-america-stands-firm-12-month-6000-gold-target-sees-silver-averaging-86