WHY BUY GOLD?
The Allure of Gold
For more than 2,000 years, individuals have owned gold for a wide variety of reasons. Investors and collectors have sought gold as a storehouse of wealth, a proven method of passing savings to the next generation, a shield against tyranny and as a beautiful memorial of past civilizations and accomplishments.
The allure of gold remains compelling for modern investors for many reasons, including: gold's status as a safe haven asset, gold's ability to offer a hedge against inflation and fluctuations in the dollar, gold's reputation as an internationally recognized monetary and financial asset and the portfolio diversification benefits of owning gold and precious metals.
Safe Haven
Gold has survived inflation, deflation, fiat currencies, financial crises and natural calamities. For centuries, owning this metal has provided intrinsic value, a storehouse of value and helped assure a measure of wealth for future generations. Gold may be countercyclical to traditional asset classes, especially in unsettled times. That is why gold is commonly referred to as a "safe haven" asset.
Diversification
Tangible assets like physical gold can add diversity to your portfolio. Among other things, gold can move independently of stocks and bonds and has the potential to appreciate in times of economic uncertainty such as inflation and a weak national currency. Many investment experts believe that adding gold to a portfolio may improve its performance.
Intrinsic Value
Gold is a physical, tangible asset with recognized intrinsic value.
Learn about the benefits of gold coins.
- S&P Capital IQ - Gold: $1,900 (in 2012) "Leo Larkin, metals and mining analyst at S&P Capital IQ, thinks that $1,900 gold might not be that much of a stretch [in 2012]. 'Gold has been ..."
- Citigroup - Gold: $2,300 - $2,400 (by end of 2012) "While we remain cautious on Gold in the near term...we continue to believe that the bull market remains intact...we believe that 2012 may be..."
- Leeb Capital Management - Gold: $2,500 - $3,000 (in 2012) "I'll give you my target for gold at the end of 2012, it's going to be trading somewhere between $2,500 and $3,000. This..."
- Global Hunter Securities - Gold: $1,800 (in 2012) "'What I am looking for is a gold price of $1,800 an ounce in 2012,' says Jeffrey Wright, senior research analyst at Global Hunter..."
- US Global Investors - Gold: $3,600 (by 2017) "'People get so caught up with the next three minutes for gold and they should really be focused on the next three years,' says Frank Holmes, ..."
- Goldman Sachs - Gold: over $1,900 (in 2012) "Wall Street investment bank Goldman Sachs predicts that gold's bull run will continue into 2012 with a low interest rate environment and..."
- CNBC - Gold: $2,400 (no period given) "Gold will top $2,400 an ounce. The long-term bull market in gold marches on. Gold won't make a straight shot to a new inflation-adjusted high. As long..."
- Nomura - Gold: $2,000 (by end of 2012) "Nomura has raised its forecast for gold prices to $2,000 an ounce by the end of 2012, from $1,800 earlier. The brokerage said the low-interest rate..."
- Morgan Stanley - Gold: $2,200 (in first half of 2012) "Gold will lead a rally in commodities in 2012 as Europe's sovereign-debt crisis continues to roil financial markets, spurring demand for ..."
- UBS - Gold: $2,050 average in 2012 "[Gold] remains one of the top commodity picks for 2012 as 'most of the factors that pushed gold higher in 2011 are not going away,' according to UBS..."
- Bank of America Merrill Lynch - Gold: $2,150 - $2,200 (average in 2012) "From a technical perspective we believe that the bull trend for gold remains intact… with gold having not yet met any of..."
- TheStreet.com - Gold: $2,500 (by May 2013) "I want to own gold here. I think gold is going to $2,500 eighteen months from now... Gold has been up for ten straight years and this going to be the..."
