Of all the precious metal, gold is the most popular as an investment. Investors generally buy gold as a way of diversifying risk, especially through the use of future contracts and derivates. The gold market is subject to speculation and volatility as are other markets. Compared to other precious metals used for investment, gold has been the most effective safe haven across a number of countries.
Like most commodities, the price of gold is driven by supply and demand, including speculative demand. However, unlike most other commodities, saving and disposal play larger roles in affecting its price than its consumption. Most of the gold ever mined still exists in accessible form, such as bullion and mass-produced jewelry, with little value over its fine weight. - so it is nearly as liquid as bullion, and can come back onto the gold market.
To be able to make a good investment in gold, it is necessary to identify the relevant factors that affect the price of gold, and then construct an optimal portfolio of the financial assets, including gold investments, stocks, and bonds before and during the financial crisis.
An investor should add gold to the investment portfolio as, gold can diversify the risks of stocks and bonds, and therefore, enhance the portfolio's ability to bear risks in the crisis.
