Fidelity portfolio manager plans to rebuild gold holdings amid Fed uncertainty

When a portfolio manager at one of the world’s largest asset firms quietly doubles their gold position in three weeks, it’s worth asking what they see coming. Ian Samson, a multi-asset portfolio manager at Fidelity International, is doing exactly that, shifting from a neutral gold stance back to overweight as uncertainty around US Federal Reserve policy clouds the outlook for traditional assets.

The move involves targeting roughly 5% gold allocation within a $3 billion income and growth strategy fund.

From overweight to neutral and back again

Samson trimmed Fidelity’s gold holdings from overweight to neutral in the January-February window, a period when gold was surging toward its peak. That peak arrived at nearly $5,600 per ounce in early 2026. Gold then dropped sharply from those highs, settling around $5,000 per ounce as of mid-July 2026, a roughly 11% decline from the top.

He’s not alone at Fidelity in thinking this way. George Efstathopoulos, another Fidelity portfolio manager, has indicated he’d consider re-entering gold positions if prices dipped an additional 5-7% from current levels.

Why the Fed matters here

Institutional investors broadly reduced gold exposure earlier in 2026 as the Fed maintained a hawkish stance. Higher interest rates typically hurt gold because they increase the opportunity cost of holding a non-yielding asset.

Samson is projecting gold to re-enter bull market territory in 2027, which implies he sees meaningful price appreciation from the $5,000 level over the next six to twelve months.

Central banks keep buying

Sovereign buyers have been accumulating gold reserves at an elevated pace, driven by diversification away from dollar-denominated assets and geopolitical hedging. For Samson, central bank purchasing appears to be a core part of the investment case alongside expectations of monetary policy adjustments.

The $3 billion fund’s 5% target allocation to gold translates to roughly $150 million worth of exposure.

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