Investing In Gold

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Author:
Sharon White

Gold has always been known as a number one investment option. But is it really that profitable to invest in gold? The gold prices differ each year. Some years are favorable for investments, some are not. Gold has always been considered a safe investment. However, in 1980 the closing price was $ 593.8 per ounce; in 2004 it was $ 442.1 per ounce.

So this rally has come as a relief to the gold bulls, who were all but extinct. Back in year 2000/2001, few were recommending gold, when it was trading at about U$ 260 per ounce. Today however, after a 70 per cent rise in the price of gold, the interest in this commodity has only increased. Our advice to you, be realistic and invest in gold only to the extent it suits your risk/return profile.

The comparative table puts in perspective the returns generated by different asset classes viz. equity, debt and gold over different periods of time. It is important to note that during these different time periods, the stock and debt markets have been through at least one significant instance of erosion in value. Gold however, has pretty much had a steady run. Despite this, gold, purely from an investment perspective, does not compare well with the other avenues. Then, why the persistent interest in gold?

There are a few reasons for the same:

* The increasing uncertainty pertaining to the US economy and fear that the US Dollar will continue to weaken has led investors to move some money into real assets such as gold.

* Rising oil prices, coupled with high liquidity, have contributed to a rise in inflationary pressures globally. Inflation, simply put, is an erosion in the value of money and therefore in such times there is a strong case to move money into real assets such as gold.

* The threat of terrorist attacks has led investors to diversify into assets such as gold, which is considered to be a good store of value (an attack on the US may cripple the US economy and result in lower stock and property prices for example, but will not have a material impact on the price of gold).

* Then there is a belief that the long-term bull market for commodities, including gold, may just be taking off. This view has been underscored by a persistent rise in the prices of other commodities too.

Indeed, over and above these, there are 'emotional' reasons why you should have gold in your portfolio. But in such instances, the 'return' is really not that important.

In our view, gold is a "must" in every portfolio as it brings in an element of diversification. The price of gold is driven by factors, which are broadly speaking different from those that drive the price of other assets such as stocks. This results in what is generally seen as a contrararian trend. To take an instance, even as stock markets corrected after the 9/11 terror attacks and the worsening economic outlook, the price of gold spurted.

Another argument in favour of gold is that from time to time, like all assets, it may present an attractive short-term investment opportunity (like in 1999 when it was undervalued by a significant margin). So if, and that is a big 'if', you can identify such an opportunity, an investment makes sense. Of course it is important that you square off the transaction when the price has corrected. Such a transaction would suit few investors as it involves a very good understanding of fundamentals as well as timing of the purchase and sale.

But having said that, gold should ideally not account for more than 5 per cent of your long-term investment portfolio. The reason is that in the long term it is likely that other asset classes, including equities and property, will outperform gold in terms of generating a return. While this may not hold true for economies like the US which are likely to slow down in the future, surely for investors in markets such as India, other investment avenues are more beckoning.

The article was produced by the member of masterpapers.com. Sharon White is a senior writer and writers consultant at term papers. Get some useful tips for thesis and term paper writing .

	.061 GRAMS ALASKA GOLD NUGGET, GOLD NUGGETS, BULLION Current Price: $ 6.10 | (4 Bids) | | Sale Ends In: 18m 19s
	Pure .9999 Fine Sold 24kt Gold Bullion / Ingot / Coin Current Price: $ 13.50 | (2 Bids) | | Sale Ends In: 18m 25s
	10 COIN LOT! OLD MINT GOLD SILVER U.S BONUS 24K BULLION Current Price: $ 19.95 | (0 Bids) | | Sale Ends In: 31m 6s
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	Pamp Suisse Gold/Pamp Gold Bar/Gold Bullion/Gold Bar Current Price: $ 139.99 | (1 Bids) | | Sale Ends In: 34m 56s
	Pure .9999 Fine Sold 24kt Gold Bullion / Ingot / Coin Current Price: $ 0.99 | (0 Bids) | | Sale Ends In: 35m 27s
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	GOLD BULLION BAR Pure 24K 9999 25g NUGGET, INGOT, COIN Current Price: $ 1,124.97 | (1 Bids) | | Sale Ends In: 1h 12m 23s
	.181 GRAMS ALASKA GOLD NUGGET, GOLD NUGGETS, BULLION Current Price: $ 15.72 | (5 Bids) | | Sale Ends In: 1h 18m 24s
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	5.5 Grains HIGHEST PURITY CALIF. GOLD NUGGET/BULLION Current Price: $ 18.75 | (0 Bids) | | Sale Ends In: 1h 48m 3s
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	2008 $50 GOLD 1 0Z Maple Leaf Coin Bullion, UNC. Current Price: $ 1,303.00 | (2 Bids) | | Sale Ends In: 2h 12m 4s
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A Quick Note From The Publisher... If you like the article above, you may be interested in the following article which is also related to Gold/Silver... Tips On Making Money From A Rising Gold Price Gold is a physical asset that is a store of value which cannot be eroded in the same way currencies can, such as printing of paper currency. As such, gold is a hedge against inflation. The spot price is ultimately driven by supply and demand, including hoarding and dis-hoarding. Of late, gold has been enjoying a 'bull run' and as such, traders are more actively looking to leverage or 'gear' their positions by buying gold equities and trading with other financial instruments. Here are 5 top tips to make money out of the gold price as it rises over time: - 1) Covered Warrants - Short term you can leverage the profit you can make as the gold price rises by buying covered warrants. This is a risky strategy but you can only lose your initial stake. Remember, the price can also go down ( incidentally you can also buy PUTS which banks on the price going down ). You can also buy 'long dated' covered warrants which gives you until the end of the year to profit from your position. 2) Paper Assets (Producers): Rather than buy physical gold, buy gold stocks already producing ( paper assets ). This will give you leverage as the companies employ gearing. The more gold goes up, the more they make bottom line ( and as such the share price rises too ). 3) Physical Gold: Purists may wish to purchase gold coins such as Kruggerands. There is a large selection available. The first decision is often whether to buy older coins or new bullion coins. 4) Paper Assets (Non-Producers): Some gold companies may not yet be producing but are sitting on potential world class gold resources with a certain amount of proven resource already. One example of this is Centamin Egypt ( CEY ). 5) Gold Futures: This is a professional market, more for a speculator than an investor. If you wish to play...