The Newcrest Mining Ltd (ASX: NCM) share price is taking off on Thursday as gold miners lead the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO)'s gains.
Materials shares involved with the precious metal are among the top-performing stocks on the index right now. The ASX 200 is up 0.26% at the time of writing.
Meanwhile, the S&P/ASX 200 Materials Index (ASX: XMJ) is up 1.17% and the S&P/ASX All Ordinaries Gold Index (ASX: XGD) has gained 2.63%.
The Newcrest share price is outperforming the motley crew of indices, gaining 2.79% at the time of writing to trade at $19.88.
So, what's helping to drive the gold stock higher on Thursday? Let's take a look.
Newcrest share price outperforms on Thursday
It likely won't come as a surprise that Newcrest shares are gaining alongside the price of gold today.
Gold futures lifted 0.3% overnight to trade at US$1,745.60 an ounce, according to CommSec. And the yellow metal is in the green again today, with the December contract rising 0.55% to US$1,755.20, as per CNBC data.
Gold's latest climb comes while the US dollar slips amid the release of the US Federal Reserve's latest policy meeting minutes. They showed that the central bank appears to be looking to moderate interest rate hikes, Reuters reports.
The gains posted by the Newcrest share price today are dwarfed by those of many of its ASX 200 peers.
The Chalice Mining Ltd (ASX: CHN) share price is up a whopping 8.8% at the time of writing. The St Barbara Ltd (ASX: SBM) share price is also rocketing, lifting 8.6%.
Unfortunately, today's gain hasn't proved enough to boost the Newcrest share price out of its 2022 slump. The stock has dumped 18% since the start of the year. It's also 17% lower than it was this time last year.
For comparison, the ASX 200 has fallen 5% this year and 2% over the last 12 months.
