NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Investors' fears of another stock decline are stoking gold fever. The spot price of gold broke hit $997.80 an ounce on Thursday, the highest level since February.
Gold has risen 4.6% in the past week. Silver added $1.81 to $16.12 for a one-week surge of 13%. For the week ending Thursday, the average precious metals fund we track popped 7.6%.
The best-performing precious metals fund this week is the ProShares Ultra Silver(AGQ Quote), which tracks the U.S. price of silver in London with 200% leverage. This exchange traded fund skyrocketed 27%.
The Precious Metals UltraSector ProFund(PMPIX Quote), a mutual fund, was the No. 2 fund with a 16% gain. The fund tracks the Dow Jones Precious Metals Index with 150% leverage. It benefited from large holdings of Barrick Gold(ABX Quote), Goldcorp(GG Quote), Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold(FCX Quote) and Newmont Mining(NEM Quote).
If you prefer unleveraged funds, take a look at the Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF(GDX Quote), which tracks the Amex Gold Miners Index. The index's top performers of the past week included Vista Gold(VGZ Quote), up 31%; IAMGOLD(IAG Quote), up 22%; Golden Star Resources(GSS Quote), up 21%; and Northgate Minerals(NXG Quote) up 19%.
