#currencydevaluation

The Dollar’s Decline: How Inflation and Economic Mismanagement Are Stealing Your Future A philosophical reflection on leadership, resilience, and the human condition.

The Dollar’s Decline: How Inflation and Economic Mismanagement Are Stealing Your Future

The Relevance of Gold in Today's Economy The old Chinese curse, "May you live in interesting times," has particular relevance to the current epoch of U.S. history. Major investors around the world are responding to the events of our perilous age by sinking their dollars, deutschmarks, and yen into gold, silver, and palladium. Big financial institutions like the Central Banks of Russia and China are also jumping on the metal's bandwagon, driving the price of these precious commodities ever higher. This is spurring a gold rush not witnessed since the Misery Index years of the 1970s. Many financial experts now view gold in particular as an island of stability in a paper-based investment market that is growing stormier all the time, a development that bodes well for everyday folks who want to shore up their retirement accounts with a precious metals hedge. Why Gold is a Reliable Investment Investments once considered as stable as granite are rapidly losing ground. Real estate is but one example. Long praised as a slam-dunk by money gurus, home buying is no longer viewed as a hurdle-free path to profit. Stratospheric pricing and higher interest rates are putting intolerable pressure on the current housing bubble, factors bound to bust the bubble sooner or later and drive the overheated real estate market into a deep freeze. According to Marc Lubaszka, President and CEO of World Financial, a highly successful investment firm specializing in precious metals based in Studio City, Calif., "People the world over are losing faith in politicians and currencies. This has resulted in a flight to gold and other precious metals, a storehouse of value for more than five thousand years. Investors are taking their money out of paper assets and putting it where it is likely to earn a better return in uncertain times. "Unlike paper-based investments, gold has maintained its value over time. The U.S. dollar has lost more than 80% of its original value since the early 1970s, when we went to a floating currency, a situation not helped very much by the debut of the Euro in the late 1990s. Unlike American dollars, a portion of the Euro is gold-backed, a stability feature that has helped it outperform the dollar over the long haul. It is for this reason that many foreign investors have been taking money out of U.S. dollars and putting it into gold and oil instead, which is one explanation for why the price of both has continued to rise in recent months. How to Invest in Gold According to Lubaszka, the best way for first-time investors to begin is by purchasing physical metals instead of gold stocks, which can be very volatile. Buy gold bars or coins and put them in a safety deposit box. If you choose to purchase coins from a coin shop, make certain you pay the lowest price possible and that they have a buyback policy. If you elect to go with a broker, fees will be inevitable because you are purchasing a tangible commodity. There are brokers, and then there are brokers. The best of the breed will answer all questions and make the process of first-time gold buying less nerve-wracking. Great brokers are also accessible when needed and quick to call with any new information that affects the value of the investment. Work with established companies; five years in business is good; ten is even better. Don't bother with firms that badger you with telemarketing offers or apply high-pressure sales tactics. Avoid paying high commissions too. Some brokers have layers of fees through which they earn more money than they do investing on behalf of customers. There are also companies out there that will not buy metal back. Stay away from them as well. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) Why is gold a good investment?Gold is a reliable investment that has maintained its value over time, unlike paper-based investments.How do I invest in gold?The best way for first-time investors to begin is by purchasing physical metals instead of gold stocks, which can be very volatile.What are the benefits of investing in gold?Gold is a storehouse of value for more than five thousand years and is likely to earn a better return in uncertain times.What should I look for in a gold broker?Work with established companies; five years in business is good; ten is even better. Don't bother with firms that badger you with telemarketing offers or apply high-pressure sales tactics.What are the risks of investing in gold?Like any investment, there are risks associated with investing in gold. The value of gold can fluctuate, and there are fees associated with purchasing physical metals. Read the full article