by theluckycountry » Tue 30 May 2023, 15:34:21
Americans consider gold the second-best long-term investment option, according to a recent Gallup poll. Gold beat out stocks, bonds and savings accounts.
https://news.gallup.com/poll/505592/rea ... rises.aspx$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '
')The perception that gold is the best investment over the long term rose from 15% in 2022 to 26% in the 2023 poll, overtaking stocks at the number two spot.
Real estate has held the top spot since 2013 with 35% of Americans rating it the best long-term investment in the most recent poll. That was down sharply from last year’s record high of 45%.
Stocks held third place with 18%, followed by savings accounts/CDs (13%) and bonds (7%). World Gold Council senior markets analyst Louise Street noted that while higher interest rates seem to have dampened investors’ perception of real estate as the best long-term investment, it hasn’t damaged the perception of gold. On the contrary, the number of Americans naming gold as the best long-term investment almost doubled this year from last. This, despite interest rates climbing to a 16-year high in March.”
The simple fact that Western peoples ignored Gold in favor of stocks after the GFC crash suggested to me that they collectively have the mentality and mindset of a gambler. Sure you can slowly save from your weekly pay packet, but if you go to the races with it and put it all on "Lucky Pride" you could come away with 3 or 4 or
10 pay packets. That's the analogy with stock investment, you roll the dice and hope you get out with a big win.
Gold investment has never been like that, it's purpose is really quite simple, to protect savings from institutional theft and from inflation. This latter part is the thing many miss because they don't see Gold doing anything for long periods of time. Then it takes off and gets their attention, then it seemingly goes back to sleep for years and they forget about it. When does Gold take off? In times of high inflation, and in time of economic uncertainty.
The latter is a supply demand effect caused by people rushing into the asset, the former is a natural part of Gold being a commodity. When food and lumber and land go up in value, so does it. Quite a relief that, because it doesn't matter what the prices of my daily needs will be in 2035, Gold will be there with purchasing power to match them. This has been proved throughout all history, was proved in the 1970's inflation, and in the 2000's, and is being proved again today.
Tesla shares? Well they have lost over 50% of their purchasing power in two years, into the teeth of inflation, just when you need the extra purchasing power the most. But they could be a hedge against inflation in the future, or they could go bankrupt and go to pennies on the dollar. That's the problem with all things tied to the manipulated paper markets. It's a gamble, you can't count on it being there when you're old and have bills to pay.
The classic example of this was the Depression from 1930 onward. Stocks crashed into the dust and stayed there and even real estate went into a long term decline, but Gold was repriced 50% higher and provided a nice retirement nest egg for those who still held it. And yes, Karen, you were allowed to own Gold in that era, even in the US you were allowed by law to hold 5 ounces of standard Gold coins ( the equivalent of $10,000 in 2020 ) plus as many numismatic ounces as you liked. How many you actually held had to do with how much of your life you wanted to surrender to a group of faceless bureaucrats who in no wise would go without their luxuries even as the nation plunged into despair.
Executive Order 6102$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'T')he order specifically exempted "customary use in industry, profession or art," a provision that covered artists, jewelers, dentists, sign-makers, etc. The order also permitted any person to hold up to $100 in gold coins, a face value equivalent to 5 troy ounces (160 g) of gold valued at approximately $10,000 in 2020. The same paragraph also exempted "gold coins having recognized special value to collectors of rare and unusual coins", which protected recognized gold coin collections from legal seizure.
So all the Bill really did was loot the safe deposit boxes of the wealthy, the average citizen was exempt. By the way, there were severe penalties for hoarding more than the generous allotments stated above, but there is no record of anyone being prosecuted under the law.