By James Brumley
InvestorPlace
To say it’s been a bad past few days for gold would be an understatement. It’s been a horrifying past few days for gold, with the precious metal’s prices falling 12% since just last Thursday. Almost needless to say, owners of SPDR Gold Shares are still a little shell-shocked.
Gold’s slump has also hit the gold miners, though harder. Since last Thursday, the Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF has given up over 19% of its value, while the Market Vectors Junior Gold Miners ETF is off by nearly 24% for that same span.
The reason miners have been under more pressure than gold itself has? Because at under $1,400 per ounce, gold prices are getting dangerously close to — if not already below — the costs incurred by some miners to dig the stuff up in the first place.