Newmont Mining (NYSE:NEM), Barrick Gold (NYSE:ABX) Continue to Look Strong

Giant gold mining companies Newmont Mining (NYSE:NEM) and Barrick Gold (NYSE:ABX) (TSE:ABX) look like they'll continue to perform strongly going forward, as Newmont not only has three solid quarters in a row under their belt, but analysts think they're going to almost jump in earnings in the current quarter by just under 100 percent, looking for profits to grow by 93 percent.

Last quarter Barrick also had great earnings, increasing by 115 percent during that time, and that should continue on in this quarter as well.

Of course with any company generating earnings like that, it's hard to repeat it at that pace over any extended period of time, but there are sure to be some solid quarters into the future, as there are few barriers to keep gold from increasing in price going forward.

The only thing that could happen would be a correction whose timing could temporarily drive down earnings. That may be precipitated by those investing in gold that are jumping on the bandwagon without knowing what is driving the gold market.

In the long term, once gold investors enter the market after a prolonged period of upward price movement, they could drive prices up to speculative levels, which could cause a bubble.

The underlying fundamentals for gold are so strong though, that even that will be tempered when it happens, which is probably years away, although gold corrections will be part of the experience off and on while gold prices continue to move up overall.