Why Barrick Mining Stock Just Dropped

By Rich Smith – Mar 3, 2026 at 1:28PM ESTKey PointsConflict in the Mideast initially drove gold prices higher, but they're falling today.War can be inflationary, but it might also convince the Federal Reserve not to lower interest rates, thus restraining inflation.Barrick Mining Corporation (B +0.91%) stock tumbled 8.7% through 1:15 p.m. ET Tuesday. As you may have heard, there's war in the Mideast, and ordinarily, investors flee to gold and silver as safe havens in times like these. Indeed, at first that's what seemed to be happening. Problem is, gold and silver prices are tanking today, and they're taking the stock price of this gold miner down with them. (Barrick also mines silver.) Image source: Getty Images. Gold and silver prices fall Gold prices closed out February near $5,278 per ounce, according to data from TradingEconomics.com. Prices spiked after U.S. and Israeli forces began striking Iran over the weekend, rising as high as $5,416 early Monday before starting to fall. At last report, gold was trading at $5,102 per ounce, down 3.9% from yesterday's close. The story on silver is similar. Silver closed at $93.73 per ounce at the end of February before moving higher, topping $96.10 Monday. Today, silver is down 6.1% to $82.46 per ounce. ExpandNYSE: BBarrick MiningToday's Change(0.91%) $0.42Current Price$46.77Key Data PointsMarket Cap$78BDay's Range$46.13 - $47.2652wk Range$17.00 - $54.69Volume7.1KAvg Vol15MGross Margin48.22%Dividend Yield1.81% Is Barrick stock a sell? Why is this happening? For one thing, the U.S. dollar -- also a safe haven -- is strengthening. Thus, it takes fewer dollars to buy an ounce of gold or silver. The natural result is falling prices for precious metals. War can also be inflationary -- which should be good for precious metal prices. But if inflation convinces the Fed to hold interest rates steady, this could lower inflation long term -- or so the thinking goes. Personally, I expect gold and silver prices to react to war worries the way they usually do. I think the general price trend will be up, not down. With Barrick stock trading just over 17 times earnings and expected to grow earnings nearly 16% next year, the stock looks close to being cheap enough to buy.Read NextJan 30, 2026 •By Billy DubersteinWhy Barrick Mining Corporation Plunged TodayJan 21, 2026 •By Todd ShriberThe Mining Stock That's Sitting on a Gold MineDec 29, 2025 •By Rich SmithWhy Barrick Mining Stock Dropped TodayNov 14, 2025 •By Brett SchaferWhy Shares of Barrick Mining Jumped Close to 12% This WeekApr 23, 2025 •By Billy DubersteinWhy Gold Miner Stocks Plunged Today on a Great day for the MarketsApr 11, 2025 •By Rich SmithWhy Newmont, Coeur Mining, and Barrick Gold Stocks Popped TodayAbout the AuthorRich Smith is a contributing Motley Fool defense and stock market analyst covering publicly traded and emerging companies in defense, space, aerospace, and other sectors. Prior to The Motley Fool, Rich practiced international corporate law for Clifford Chance in Russia, and for the Russian-Ukrainian Legal Group in Moscow, Kyiv, and Washington, D.C. He holds a bachelor’s degree in international relations from the College of William & Mary, a law degree from the University of Baltimore, and a language certification from the International Institute of Russian Language & Culture in Tver, Russian Federation. The Globe and Mail once featured him as “one of the best stock pickers since 2009.”TMFDittyX@RichSmithFoolStocks MentionedBarrick MiningNYSE: B$46.77(+0.91%)+$0.42*Average returns of all recommendations since inception. Cost basis and return based on previous market day close.