The price of gold started the week trading slightly lower than $1,500, a threshold the yellow-colored precious metal crossed several days ago and has maintained in large part thanks to weak performances on Wall Street over the past weeks and concerns of a coming recession. However, the stock market closed Monday racking up nearly 250 points for the Dow and gaining back many of the losses suffered in recent days. Certainly, a good day on Wall Street makes stockholders and many soon-to-be retirees happy, but those who are socking away money in gold may be less than thrilled with the recent news.
Of course, what’s good for the overall economy is good for everyone, whether or not they own gold. But there’s still a great deal of uncertainty looking ahead, ranging from further economic woes on the domestic front to continued trade issues with China and persistent sociopolitical concerns coming from the oil-rich Middle East. Thus, gold is still a good buy for those who want a hedge against inflation and an insurance policy in the case of economic tragedy. And if gold prices edge further downward in the near term it can only represent a great opportunity to stack more gold away for a rainy day.
Among the most popular gold investments these days are generic pre-1933 $20 gold double eagles, which have flooded the market in recent years from overseas hoards and are available for tiny premiums over spot. In fact, circulated common-date $20 gold double eagles can generally be bought for lower premiums over spot than American Gold Eagles. While there are significant physical differences between pre-’33 gold coins and modern-day American Gold Eagles, not to mention the fact that bullion eagles are 91.67% pure versus the 90% gold composition of pre-1933 gold coins, the earlier gold coins are proportionately much scarcer than the American Gold Eagles and have vast crossover appeal with numismatists. How high any of these eagles will fly in the future is anyone’s guess, but these highly liquid coins have performed well for countless investors over the years and are sure to post more gains so long as market conditions are favorable.
