Where to buy physical Gold/Silver Bullion at Market price?

EdGasketTheSecond

bery_451 said:

EdGasketTheSecond said:

Gordon Brown sold off most of our gold reserves at the worst possible price in the gold market; hence nicknamed the 'Brown Bottom'.

China have been buying vast amounts of gold because:

1) They are smart

2) The want the Yuan to replace the US Dollar as the world reserve currency (and it will)

The Chinese Yuan money is not backed by gold so how will it be the world reserve currency?

As bowlhead99 says or because if most fiat currencies go !!!!!! because trust is lost in them then the Chinese have more gold than anyone else and could tie their currency to it, at least initially, so people will trust in  it more than a purely fiat currency. That way it becomes the de facto currency of the world.

bowlhead99

EdGasketTheSecond said:

bery_451 said:

EdGasketTheSecond said:

Gordon Brown sold off most of our gold reserves at the worst possible price in the gold market; hence nicknamed the 'Brown Bottom'.

China have been buying vast amounts of gold because:

1) They are smart

2) The want the Yuan to replace the US Dollar as the world reserve currency (and it will)

The Chinese Yuan money is not backed by gold so how will it be the world reserve currency?

As bowlhead99 says or because if most fiat currencies go !!!!!! because trust is lost in them then the Chinese have more gold than anyone else and could tie their currency to it, at least initially, so people will trust in  it more than a purely fiat currency. That way it becomes the de facto currency of the world.

The idea that an established fiat currency of a world superpower is going to leap to become 'backed by gold' and tie their currency to it is nonsense. What is more valuable, some tons of yellowish metal sitting in a big warehouse, or the economic output of 1.4bn producers and consumers participating in a market supported by the state, discounted back from perpetuity?

EdGasketTheSecond

My vote is for the yellow stuff; it can't be created by the Fed. I'm buying gold, not US treasuries.

DiggerUK

A return to gold backed currencies is a figment of the headbangers imagination. They were always only useful in times when trade was preferred to war. 

Wars were always fought on borrowed money, the only useful reason for a state to own gold was, and remains, as a strategic asset in times of war.
The 'rules' were always promoted to 'guidelines' at the drop of a hat when wars needed financing. WW1 was the end of that farce..._

eskbanker

DiggerUK said:

the only useful reason for a state to own gold was, and remains, as a strategic asset in times of war.

In what meaningful sense does that still apply, in the age of asymmetric or proxy warfare, mutually assured destruction, etc?

DiggerUK

I base that judgement partly on an understanding of how gold was used by the Duke of Wellington, and Laurence of Arabia. 

Wellington paid locally for what his army needed, any self respecting Spaniard or Portuguese was happy to accept gold, bills of any sort weren't much use. But the money to buy the gold taken to Wellington was done on the never never.
Laurence of Arabia could only secure Arab support by gold, yet the British financed the whole war on credit. 

In times like now when sanctions can be imposed by powers, (think US embargoes) gold pays the bills. Russia and Iran may be able to swap oil and gas for goods, but gold works just as well, and is the Martini of the fx world.

The politics of gold internationally is not just something for thriller writers, it's every bit as dirty as the arms trade. Russia and China increase their gold reserves not just by purchasing on the international market, but by commandeering all domestic production at market value. It sure as hell  isn't done to  bring back the "barbarous relic of the gold standard"..._

buglawton

chrisgg said:

Probably easier to just buy a gold ETF.

Unless you want to employ an armed guard at your house, this makes the most sense.

The Daily Telegraph said a few days ago: The most common way to invest in gold is to buy an ETF or an exchange traded commodity (ETC)... Invesco Physical Gold ETC. The fund costs just 0.19pc, making it attractive as high fees can eat into returns quickly.

coyrls

bery_451 said:

Gold been stable for thousands of years so how is it volatile?

Do you mean chemically stable?  If you mean the price of gold is this what you mean by stable (inflation adjusted, i.e. "real" price)?

lescarp88

Is there much of a difference between the different gold ETFs (currency unhedged/hedged aside)?

i.e. what's the difference between Invesco physical gold compared to ishares gold etf? Or are they broadly similar?

DiggerUK

lescarp88 said:

Is there much of a difference between the different gold ETFs............

This article is the easiest read on all the ways to save with gold. It's also simple to turn the cookies off..._

https://moneyweek.com/463616/the-best-ways-to-buy-and-sell-gold