Gold, stocks, real estate. Where is it best to invest in 2026?

Illustrative photo. Photo: Andrey Rudakov Bloomberg via Getty Images

Gold — continued growth expected

Luzgina names gold as one of the interesting assets available for Belarusians to invest in.

Over the past five years, the price per ounce has increased from approximately $1800 to $4400 (prices as of mid-December 2020 and 2025).

"A part of an investment portfolio can indeed be kept in gold, as there are currently no forecasts that its prices will fall.

This is due not only to geopolitical tensions but also to the fact that the US and the EU are lowering interest rates. Accordingly, investing in American or European securities becomes less profitable, so investors are looking for other options. This, to some extent, may fuel demand for gold as a precious metal that has been showing growth for a long time," Luzgina believes.

Павялічыць

Gold price chart for the last five years. Screenshot: tavex.lt

At the same time, the expert notes that the growth in gold prices may slow down, as the main growth over the five-year period occurred in the last two years. In early 2024, an ounce was trading around $2000.

This means we may face a multi-year period of price stabilization for this precious metal.

Cryptocurrency — no more than 5-10% of all investments

As for cryptocurrencies, according to the economist, they should not make up more than 5-10% of an investment portfolio.

"It is possible to allocate a portion of assets to cryptocurrencies, but not a large amount, as we see that cryptocurrencies are highly dependent on both political decisions and the actions of large investors. Additionally, market regulation is an important factor," the expert believes.

For example, regarding the most popular cryptocurrency — Bitcoin — it has fallen in price by 16.6% over the last year: from $104,000 to $87,000, although it had been growing for a long time before that.

Павялічыць

Screenshot: Google

At the same time, there were periods of more significant drops during the year. For instance, in autumn of this year, when Bitcoin fell by more than 30% in two months: from $123,000 in early October to $84,000 in late November.

Looking at a five-year period, Bitcoin has increased in price by 265% during this time: from approximately $24,000 at the end of 2020 to about $87,000 now.

Stocks — energy, defense

Assuming that some of the sanctions from the US and EU might be lifted next year, Belarusians might gain additional investment opportunities.

This applies both from the perspective of regaining access to previously unavailable instruments, and because the possible lifting of sanctions against Belarus and Russia could lead to a significant increase in the stock prices of companies currently under sanctions.

"In the event of sanctions being lifted against individual, for example, Russian companies, their shares could show rapid growth, so such securities can be considered," the expert notes.

Also, according to Luzgina, those wishing to invest in stocks and bonds can still look at securities of European companies in the energy sector and green economy.

Another promising direction is shares of companies in the military-industrial complex, which will be on the rise in Europe in the coming years.

Павялічыць

Illustrative photo. Photo: Nasha Niva

However, due to current sanctions restrictions, this is difficult to do, so this instrument is more accessible to Belarusians abroad.

"Defense spending in European countries is increasing, so for several years, companies producing goods for the defense sector will also be on the rise. This, in turn, will fuel investors' interest in the military-industrial complex.

In general, if the situation in the region stabilizes and sanctions against Russia begin to be lifted, one could consider buying European stock indexes or bonds," the economist says.

Real estate — market overheated

Nastassia Luzgina calls investing in real estate the simplest and most popular instrument, as external factors have less influence on it. The main limitation for such investments is, perhaps, large sums of money.

"No boom and, consequently, no price growth is expected next year, as economic growth is slowing down, and incomes will no longer grow as actively as in previous years, so real estate prices will stabilize," Luzgina believes.

In addition, it is important to note that the price per square meter in Belarus has already closely approached the peak figures observed at the end of 2007. And the price peak of late 2013-2014 has already been surpassed this year. This indicates that prices are already not low. However, dollar inflation since 2014 has been significant.

"Price growth was facilitated by both the growth of real incomes of the population and the strengthening of the Belarusian ruble against the dollar, which made real estate more affordable for most of the population. This fueled demand and influenced price growth in dollar terms," the economist explains.

Павялічыць

Illustrative photo. Photo: "Nasha Niva"

According to Luzgina, buying real estate in 2026 is primarily worthwhile for those who need it for living, not for investing in the hope that its value will significantly increase in the next two to three years, as it did in 2000-2007 and 2023-2025.

"One must not forget that apartment prices in Belarus are unstable."

Additional risks are posed by the fact that the state stimulates the construction industry, and banks offer lower interest rates. Thanks to this, construction rates remain high, while demographic indicators are worsening.

Without any serious changes in terms of economic growth and an improvement in the demographic situation, the housing market will become oversaturated, which will prevent prices from rising," Luzgina explains.

Based on this, those who expect a high increase in its value should not invest in housing next year.

"Moreover, in the event of a weakening of the Belarusian ruble, demand may begin to decline, and then exchange rate fluctuations will have an effect inverse to what we observed when the ruble was strengthening."

• 1
• 1
• 0
• 0
• 0
• 0
• 0
• 0