Gold, Platinum, Silver and Their Prices over the Years
Gold, Platinum, Silver and Their Prices over the Years
Posted by Sharif Khan on 22nd Oct 2015
Gold, Platinum, Silver and Their Prices over the Years
The world is filled with minerals and some have higher value than others because of their rarity or uses. Among these minerals, the most common ones are gold and silver. For years, these precious metals have dominated the market place; each playing their significant role in major economies. Over the years, these rare minerals have been able to remain precious and expensive. When it comes to the market of gold, silver and other minerals, there are several factors that affect how the mineral is doing in the market and how much it is selling for. In this article, we will examine some of these minerals and how their market prices have changed over the past several years.
Gold:
When you hear the term gold, you automatically think of something precious and expensive. Since its discovery, gold has remained one of the most precious metals and most popular for investment. Like most markets, the gold market is prone to speculation and instability. For years, gold has been used as a currency from the past and has been a standard currency for many economies of different countries. The price of gold is very important, and as an individual or investor you need to look at the price of gold to learn more about it.
Similar to any other item in the market, the price of gold is influenced by factors such as supply and demand. When you are looking at the history of gold price, you need to look at mainly three trends, the uptrend, downtrend, and sideways trends. Having an idea on how the market behaves and moves is very important as an investor. Looking at a few gold historical charts will give a trend of prices over the previous fifty years or more. In the early 1970s, the price of gold increased gradually as the years moved on. In 1980, the price of gold reached its peak, increasing from 101.50 USD per ounce to 873 USD per ounce. This was a very upward trend for gold.
Between 1982 and 1996, the price of gold went into a sideways trend. The market backed and the price went down from an estimated 514 USD to 281 USD, which was a very big difference. When you look at the price of gold in the 90s, you will notice that people thought of the market of gold to be dead. The prices fluctuated to a high of 325 USD to a low of 250 USD per ounce. This market situation did not last for long. In the year 2001, the price of gold started increasing due to several factors and in the year 2011, the price of gold reached a mark of 1900 USD. Since then the price of gold has continued to fluctuate due to several market influences, both internal and external.
Over the past recent years, there has been an increase in demand for gold. The demand of bars and coins has gradually increased over the years, with estimates of around 6% making 302.2 tons, which is mainly in Asia and the Middle East. Currently the demand of gold went so high, but the supply is slowly diminishing, taking an unusual turn the value of gold has decreased. With gold, this might not be a bad sign, since the value is expected to rise again in the near future.
Silver:
Silver is another precious metal, similar to gold it is also used for investment. Silver has been around for more than four thousand years now. When you look at the silver market, you will indeed find that there are a few similarities when compared to the gold market. Over the past several years, the price of silver has been manipulated by several factors, which has seen the value go up and down for the past 50 years and more. If you look at the price of silver in the 70s or 80s, and also today you will find that the price manipulation is high. There are several historical instances where you will find the price of silver being largely affected by several factors. For example, in the 1970s the Hunt Brothers started accumulating quite large amounts of silver.
In 1792, silvers started to play an important role in the monetary system of various countries, especially the USA. The US government utilized both gold and silver as a bimetallic monetary form, which gradually increases the value of silver. In the year 1965, the monetary use of silver was halted by US and other countries, except in bullion coins.
By the year 1979, the Hunt brothers had almost cornered the worldwide market of silver. It is estimated that within the last 9 months of 1979, the two brothers made 2 to 4 billion in silver speculation, having an estimated 100 million ounces in holdings. Due to this, the silver future contracts and the silver bullion increases from its 11 USD in Sep 1979 to 50 USD in Jan 1980. Within two months, the silver prices largely collapsed to a price of less than 11 USD per ounce, which was the largest single day drop of silver. After this tragedy Hunt brothers filed for bankruptcy in 1988, mainly due to the many lawsuits they got from the silver speculation. Down the line, in the year 1979, Warren Buffet bought 130 million silver troy ounces at an estimated 4.50 USD per troy (totaling to 585 million USD).
Today you will find that silver does not play that stronghold that it used to, and it is highly valued today as an industrial commodity. The prices today are mainly being affected by the scarcity of silver, making demand higher. Currently, banks are responsible for the price manipulation of silver prices. As the years continue, the demand for silver continues, for its coin, bullion form and also for its industrial uses. It is believed that the high demand of silver will eventually catch up with the supply, thus it will affect the silver prices. There is over one billion USD worth of silver being used annually, which will gradually increase, thus affecting the market of silver. Currently, silver goes for 16 USD per ounce, which is expected to increase over the coming years. This is because of the non-ending demand for silver at the industrial scale.
Platinum:
When you think of precious metals, gold or silver will be the first thing that will come to your mind, and many will not think of platinum. One of the most precious of metals is platinum, which is much rarer than gold or silver. All the platinum mines today can barely fill a normal living room. The characteristics of platinum such as the metal hardness are what make it so precious and rare. Discovered in the 17th century, platinum has its unique uses that make it more precious than gold or silver. Being a very high demand mineral, platinum prices are prone to changes due to the supply and demand external and internal factors. This metal is used in many various ways and items today.
When you look at the price of platinum over the past fifty years you will evidently see a steady growth of the price. The price of platinum has continued to go up, due to its increase in demand and low supply rate. Back in the 1980s the price for platinum was approximately 15 USD per gram, and this price has continued to increase over the years. From 1986 to around 2001, the price of platinum has been almost constant with it ranging between 10 USD to 20 USD per gram. After the year 2001, the price of platinum skyrocketed and reached a max of almost 70 USD per gram in 2008. Since then the price has fluctuated, reaching a low price of approximately 27 USD per gram.
Since 2011, the price of platinum has decreased, but it has continued to be steady. The price of platinum is affected by several factors. Considered precious, platinum is an industrial commodity and is mainly affected by demand pressures. Once the demand of this metal went up in the industry, the prices also went up. Platinum is used in the automobiles, creating Jewelry and coins, and its demand is increasing each year.
Another factor that affects the price is the market condition and the production of the metal. If the production is expensive or decreases, the price of platinum will be affected largely. With an increase in jewelry production and the automobile industry, the need for more platinum is expected to increase with time. The production of platinum continues to decrease in the main production country, South Africa, which will directly affect the entire platinum market, thus causing fluctuation of the prices. As the year 2015 comes to an end the prices of platinum are accepted to increase with the increase of the platinum demand in the various sectors.
Don’t forget to check out our unique engagement rings , halo engagement rings , wholesale diamonds, engagement ring settings , and custom engagement rings options…