As the U.S.-China trade spat drags on, so too could the stock market volatility that has accompanied it so far this month. The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average both fell 2.4 percent on May 13 – their worst days since January. The longer trade negotiations remain ongoing, the longer the geopolitical and economic risks remain.
One potential hedge against volatility and market risk is having an allocation to gold, which has historically moved in the opposite direction of equities. I often recommend having a 10 percent portfolio weighting in the yellow metal –