Saturday, April 5, 2014

Gold And Its Meaning In Our World

By Andrew Block


Throughout history, gold has always been a magical metal. Many different societies have used this rare substance as money and a sign of wealth. Wealthy members of society and rulers always cherished gold and adorned themselves with the yellow metal. Kings, queens and pharaohs decked themselves and their surroundings with gold throughout history as in this modern era, the very wealthy members of society have even used this precious metal to plate their cars. Gold has always been a sign of wealth and chances are that it will always be a sign of wealth and opulence.

When times get tough economically, banks, countries and wealthy individuals often turn to gold to preserve their riches. Gold gives people and societies the security of knowing that no matter what happens in the world, they will still be wealthy. While money in the bank can suddenly become worthless in times of trouble, gold in the hand will always be able to buy you the things you need to survive and live the life you have grown accustomed to. People might think that we're crazy to think this way or prepare for something that might never happen but it's often better to be safe than sorry. There are many countries where after a war their currency becomes as worthy as the paper its printed on. It is the wise investor who is prepared and the savvy person who is realistic about the future possibilities and invests at least a portion of his savings in a material that will hold its value as well as be liquid enough to turn into money no matter where he is in the world.

There are some that feel that gold simply lacks the liquidity that other investments have. Stocks can be sold quickly and money in a savings account can be withdrawn easily. Owning gold is probably difficult to turn into spendable cash, right? Actually, precious metals are very liquid and it is possible to exchange gold for currency in many countries. You would simply walk into a bank with your gold and ask for it to be exchanged for money. Selling your gold back to the source of your investment or another investor is also an option and this is often the route that most owners go when they decided to liquidate their portfolio or a portion of their investment. Gold is actually more liquid that many other investment vehicles.

There are many other physical goods that you can invest your money in but their liquidity is often limited. Homes, raw land and material goods such as cars or collectibles might be great ways to invest your money but their liquidity is often limited. Selling a home or car quickly often requires you to sell at a bargain price if you need money for an emergency. Also, it is often difficult to unload a house that you invested in quickly if prices begin to plummet as they often do during an economic crisis. Gold, on the other hand, often increases in value and goes up in price during tough economic times. As stock prices plummet, the price of gold often goes up since wise investors scramble to move their money into something that is safe and secure.

Gold is often viewed as one of the most stable and logical long term investments. While there might be days, weeks or months when the price of gold goes down, overall, gold retains its value and historically goes up in value over time. There are people that trade gold the same way that people trade stocks. They buy and sell gold short term hoping to ride the highs and lows in the market. Overall, though, most investors look at gold for security as well as a way to avoid inflation that is prevalent in an economy where money is printed and injected into the economy, this making the existing money worth less. All of these aren't the only reason why we might want to invest in gold.

How many of us dreamed when we were children of being rich? We dreamed of having gold bars or ingots. We daydreamed of the perfect life where we were happy and secure. We had the ability to buy what we wanted and do what we wanted because we were rich. In our secret safe we stores our gold bullion and we took it out from time to time to hold it in our hands. We could almost feel the heft of the heavy metal.

We all have that desire deep within us to own gold in some shape or form. While fulfilling a childhood dream might not be the primary motivating factor in investing in gold, it is entirely likely that more than one investor smiled with delight and felt like that child that they once were the first time they felt the weight of gold in their hand for the first time. There is something special about gold that gives us a pleasant feeling inside. Even though this might not be the primary reason for buying gold, it certainly is a nice bonus that investors might never admit to anyone other than themselves.




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