Friday, 3 June 2011

Investing In Gold

By Owen Jones


A very diversified investment portfolio has a small space for a position in gold. Some people think that investing in gold means buying gold coins, usually South African Kruger Rands, which are one troy ounce in weight. Other speculators purchase gold futures on the commodity exchange.

However, futures contracts are extremely precarious because you are gambling that the value of gold will rise or fall in the future. The contract itself requires a relatively small up front payment, but you will have to put up guarantees called margin to take care of daily fluctuations in price.

The reason investors are attracted to gold at the moment is because often in the past, when the stock market is down, the gold market is up. Weakness in the dollar frequently brings a surge in the price of gold too.

Another method of investing in gold is through stocks and precious metal funds, which can be bought through a stock broker. However, you will need to choose your adviser very cautiously, because this area of investing takes highly specialized expertise.

The following tips are meant as examples only as you will need up-to-the-minute information, if you are thinking about investing in stocks, shares and funds. One of the names that will crop up in any investigation is Agnico-Eagle Mines, which is traded on the NYSE and the Toronto Stock Exchange under the ticker AEM. They have 30+ year history in the mining of gold and In that time, they have brought to market 4,000,000+ ounces of gold.

Gold has made massive profits for investors in gold since the late 1970's. However, the secret to making money from gold is knowledge of the different resistance points in the price and the assessment of the worldwide market for the use of gold. It is used primarily in jewellery and electronics and some other types of manufacturing.

The biggest markets for gold jewellery is India and other Eastern countries. China's new-found prosperity is also having an effect on the markets, although manufacturing is still of prime significance there.

You will have to have a good stockbroker or consultant, because the gold market is so complicated. If you are speculating on gold as a hedge against a vulnerable dollar, you are taking gigantic risks and you will need to look for any increase in the dollar like a hawk. A fairly shrewd tactic is to set yourself realistic limits. For instance, are you happy with a 10% profit or are you going to wait for a 25% gain?

Gold can be affected by seasonal events. Check out when people in India get married. It is seasonal and around Christmas time. Then St. Valentine's Day is a realistic influence too, but you or your adviser will have to examine the trends and the graphs.

You can get into gold mining stocks for fairly small money, but it is not the cost of the share certificate that is important, it is the yield on those shares. Be on your guard with small mining companies, because the expenses of exploration are ruinous. Likewise, profits on hitting a big seam would be wonderful for a small company.




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