The Globe and Mail reports in its Friday edition that gold and precious metals have been rallying, helping the S&P/TSX Composite Index outperform the S&P 500, with fund managers saying there could still be time for retail investors to get in on the action. A Canadian Press dispatch to The Globe reports that J. Zechner Associates' John Zechner says: "In Canada, gold has been the huge mover, and I think if you break apart the index, gold is now at 12 per cent of our index, and that has been the huge winner. ... That to me is the single most important reason why Canada has played such catch-up and has actually done better than the S&P 500, certainly this year so far." The TSX was up about 11 per cent year-to-date, as of Wednesday afternoon, while the S&P 500 was up about 8 per cent. Meanwhile, the price of gold has risen about 30 per cent over the course of the year so far, with the August gold contract hovering around $3,400 (U.S.) an ounce. Middlefield manager Dennis da Silva notes the S&P/TSX global gold index is up 40 per cent year-to-date. So if you tie that into the TSX, I would say about 30 per cent of the index's return is driven by gold and silver names or precious metals in general.