Why is Gold the Metal of Choice For Investors?
Thursday, May 20, 2010 13:37For thousands of years, gold has been viewed as a valuable currency, commodity, investment vehicle and a priceless jewel. No other asset has the glamour and appeal that gold has. Interest in the said metal has peaked in the past few years. What special qualities did the investors find that has made them turn their interest to gold?
Like everything else, the price of gold is driven by the demand and supply forces. According to research, the annual demand for gold exceeds by 1,000 tonnes over mine production. Investing in gold is an excellent means of evading inflation. In case of inflation, gold is better than other investment vehicles such as bonds, equities and real estate. Gold is a commodity that is used for preserving value, even when currency is losing value. Gold is one of the most stable commodities around. During national crisis, for instance, when people live in fear of either having their assets stripped from them or having their hard-earned currency undergo devaluation. In such a scenario, gold seems to be a solid asset. These are uncertain times, and caution and risk have to be balanced.
Having learnt from troubled times, investors know that they should not have all their eggs in one basket. Hence, successful investing is to invest in an array of investment vehicles, instead of just one or two. Gold has joined the investment basket, which already contained stocks, shares, real estate and the like. A 10% gold investment is typical among those who were wise enough to diversify their investment portfolios.
For the first time since 1988, central banks became net buyers of bullion. The Indian Central Bank purchased 200 tonnes of ignot from the IMF.
In times of currency depreciation, it is advisable to invest in gold. Gold bullion is a form of saving for "rainy days".
There are various means by which you can invest in gold. These include buying real gold, buy bullion or gold IRA, investing in gold exchange traded funds, and other forms of gold investment. Buy gold bullion collecting is one form of investment that is rapidly gaining popularity. All indicators signify that gold investment is the current trend and based on the prevailing socio-ecomic status, among the safest.
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