Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Why Invest In Gold?

By Jack Wagon

One of the most precious metals meant for investment today is gold. Gold has a long history of being used as a scale for measuring wealth and as a barter item since ages. It is not just a commodity; it is actually a non-official currency used around the globe. Gold is used to support the respective currencies by the central banks of each country.

There are two main reasons for using gold as an investment. Gold is bought by the investors to gain profit from its continuous rising prices, and to use as a deception in times of financial downturns or crisis.

One can invest in gold in a variety of ways. The most common way is to store it in its solid form-bars, coins or bullions can be bought over the counter or through a gold dealer. One can save wealth in the form of gold for generations to come. This is risk-free way of investing in gold.

Investing in gold exchange traded funds is another way of investing in gold. One can trade these funds in the form of shares on the stock exchanges of the entire world. ETFs allow you to trade gold without physically storing it. Similarly, gold certificates can be bought and dealt in without storing physical gold. Yet another way of gold investment is through buying shares of gold mining companies or gold stocks. But it is crucial to make sure that the company you are dealing with has sound financial standing. Only then you can benefit from the soaring prices of gold. You as well as the gold mining company will make huge profits this way.

Various banks around the world offer gold accounts to the investors, where gold can be traded similar to any foreign currency. In this way, one can gain ownership of the account and the gold.

There are other kinds of ways according to which one can invest in gold. Gold derivative is a well known way of doing it. These are based on gold futures and gold future options that are used for speculations. But, this is a risky business because it requires great experience in this field. Those who are investing in gold for the first time or those who do not want to take any risk, should only invest in solid gold.

It is important for investors to diversify their portfolios in order to reduce risk. Many investors believe that gold can be a wise choice for diversification and can result in a healthy portfolio. Gold is a solid investment option and its prices usually do not fluctuate much in times of economic instability or recession. In recent times, the dollar has lost its place as a stable investment option, and investors are now becoming more and more interested in investing in commodities. During these difficult times, investors are more inclined towards investing their money in precious metals such as gold. Thus, it should be a part of every healthy portfolio.

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