From ancient Egyptians to the cultures of today, gold has always been valued and recognized as the number one means of preserving wealth. Man has had a love affair with gold for centuries. Gold jewelry was a sign of wealth and power centuries ago, just as it is today.
Gold is measured by troy weight and grams. Because pure gold is fragile, it is often alloyed with other metals. The amount of gold in these alloys is indicated by carats with 24 carats being pure gold. The purity of a gold bar is typically shown by a decimal figure with 0.995 being very pure gold. The price of gold is regulated by trading in gold markets. However, Gold Fixing is the procedure used to provide a daily benchmark price for the gold industry.
Historically, gold was used to “back” paper money. Paper money could actually be used to redeem for gold bullion. However, in today’s society this has changed due to currency devaluation, although our currency is still technically backed by gold, the US and European banks have manipulated the market to prevent currency devaluation.
Today, gold is recognized as one of the safest forms of investment. Unlike the stock market that fluctuates with the economy and perhaps even the weather, gold holds its value very well. Many investors today are looking to purchase and hold gold as a form of investment versus investing in stocks or bonds. Investors have used gold bullion coins and bars for years to hedge against inflation and other economic fluctuations and this is something that has become increasingly popular in the light of the recent recession.