The digital age. An age when even those things that are intangible hold a lot of value. Information is the most defining resource in the digital age. Tech giants like Google have been built upon information and its availability. Social media is the new way that we are able to interact with the people we like, and even something as intimate as dating has become internet-based. Relationships are formed and businesses are built on information.
But there’s a problem with banking a significant portion of your resources on intangible things. If the system fails, you could lose your assets completely if you don’t have a tangible representation of your wealth, the most common of which is physical money. However, besides money, gold is another resource that you should consider owning, especially in this age of cryptocurrencies and wire transfers. Here’s why:
Weak Stock Market Correlation
This is easily the best advantage that gold has over any stock option. A weak stock market correlation means that its value will remain relatively constant even as the stock market plummets. In fact, you simply have to look at how gold has performed during the last recession. Its value was not only retained during the recession, but it even increased in value at some points.
New Technologies Are Apt To Send Prices Higher
Thanks to improved mining as well as a slew of better methods for discovering gold, gold production is bound to increase. For reference, global gold production peaked at 2,470 metric tons in 2005. As of 2017, gold production has grown to 3,125 metric tons.
Gold has many uses, especially in the tech industry where gold is a key material in the production of electronics and jewelry. Given our addiction to technology and the constant production of new gadgets, we can expect gold prices to shoot up, which makes it handy to have gold stored.
What’s truly ironic is that technology also allows you to buy gold with bitcoin. You can trade your digital currency for some real-life gold coins.
Gold is a Buttress Against an Economic Crisis
Banking is a vital part of everyday life. In fact, we now have online banking which allows us to make transactions without even having to hold the money ourselves. And while this presents an unprecedented convenience, it also presents a vulnerability in the system.
It’s no longer uncommon to find banks getting hacked. In fact, this article clearly illustrates the extent to which the danger is prevalent. It’s not far-fetched to think that the system may eventually fall prey to these attacks or through its own failures. Whichever the case is, gold is one of, if not the best non-digital resource to keep stocked.
However, if you’re planning on keeping gold, it is important to note that you shouldn’t simply store in at home or worse, bury it somewhere. There are more modern and safer options for storing gold, the best of which is to have it held in a gold depository and to have your gold insured.