A gate valve having a valve body defining a flow passage therethrough. The gate valve has a movable gate with an upper and a lower edge for opening and closing the flow passage and a lifting stem extending from the upper edge of the gate configured to move the movable gate between open and closed positions. At balancing stem is configured to offset at least a portion of the force applied to the lifting stem by a fluid flowing through the gate valve when the movable gate is moved between open and closed positions.