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Gold - The Safest Investment

In today’s world the single most important question on everyone’s’ mind is – What is the safest mean of investment? The deepening World Economic Recession, growing uncertainty and weakening of  major Currencies like Dollar and Euro ,  defaulting banks, almost negligible bank interest  and extremely volatile stock markets has shaken people’s faith in the most common instruments of investments. Everyone is on a lookout for a safer means of investment where the value will increase and not decrease. The answer lies in the four magic letters G O L D.Gold is traditionally viewed as the ultimate safe haven during times of economic volatility and therefore seen as a wealth preserver.  

The Gold prices have rocketed in last few years rising from an average of $858.69 per ounce in January 2009 to a high of $1895 per ounce in September2011. Due to  the stock markets enduring some of their worst falls on record as the financial crisis hit, in response to which an unprecedented amounts of money was printed and that the dollar has been floundering, the precious metals have soared high in prices.Since gold is used as a hedge against the US dollar and also is liquid, therefore easy to sell and buy, it is considered as the safest mode of investment.The simplest way to invest in gold is by purchasing gold coins and/or bars. Gold oriented funds and derivatives are riskier due to the different factors affecting their value.

 The Gold Bars are available in various sizes. In Europe, Good Delivery bars are approximately 400 troy ounces (12 kg). 1 kilogram (32 oz) are also popular, although many other weights exist, such as the 10oz, 1oz, 10 g, and 100g.. In some countries, like Canada, Argentina, Austria, Liechtenstein and Switzerland, the Gold bars can easily be bought or sold at the major banks. In United Kingdom they are readily available at the Bullion Dealers and now they can be easily bought over the internet.

Gold coins are the other common way of owning gold. Bullion coins are priced according to their fine weight, plus a small premium based on supply and demand.The one ounce gold bullion coins such as Krugerrands or Britannias are the most popular for both small investors and high net worth individuals who see the advantages of owning legal tender bullion coins, either in their possession or in depositories, and recognise the advantages of the divisibility afforded by them.Other common gold bullion coins include the Australian Gold Nugget (Kangaroo), Austrian Philharmoniker (Philharmonic), Austrian 100 Corona, Canadian Gold Maple Leaf, Chinese Gold Panda, Malaysian Kijang Emas, French Napoleon or Louis d'Or, Mexican Gold 50 Peso, British Sovereign, American Gold Eagle, and American Buffalo. Coins may be purchased from a variety of dealers both large and small either in person or over the internet.

The value of bullion coins and bars is determined almost solely by the price of gold and thus follows the bullion price.Choosing to invest in a Gold Bar against a Gold coin depends entirely upon the individuals need. Larger Gold bars have a smaller premium, however they require a lot of funding and can be more restrictive in re-selling and can become costly to liquidate if there is actually no particular use for them. When trying to sell this form of gold, there can be various fees that may be involved, such as handling fees, refining fees, or assay fees, which will make this type of investment less profitable. Whereas the gold coins are easier to sell, easier to acquire, and can provide an investment opportunity, especially in the case of the older coins that can many times be sold to private collectors at premium prices.