Imagine yourself sitting in a flow swirling water in a bowl, desperately hoping to see a tiny yellow glint of golden and dreaming of striking it rich. America has come a long way now but gold holds a prominent place within our market. Following is a comprehensive introduction to hints on where beginners should start, the risks and benefits of each strategy, and gold , from how it is obtained by us to to invest in it and it's invaluable.

It was also hard to dig gold and the more difficult something is to get, the greater it is valued. With time, humans collect and store and began using the metal as a means riches. In fact, early paper currencies were normally backed by gold, with each printed bill corresponding to an quantity of gold held in a vault someplace for which it could, technically, be exchanged (this rarely occurred ).

So the link between gold and paper currency has been broken nowadays currencies are largely fiat currencies. However, people still love the yellow metal. Where does demand for gold come from The most significant demand industry by far is jewellery, which accounts for around 50% of demand. Another 40 percent stems from direct investment in gold, such as that used to create medals, bullion, coins, and gold bars.

It is different than numismatic coins, collectibles that trade based on demand for the particular type of coin rather than its gold material.) Investors in gold include individuals banks, and, more lately, exchange-traded funds which buy gold on behalf of the others. Gold is often regarded as a investment.

This is one reason that when financial markets are volatile, investors tend to push up the price of gold. Because gold is a good conductor of electricity, the demand for gold comes for use in things such as gadgets, heat shields, and dentistry. How is gold's price determined Gold is a commodity which trades based on demand and supply.

Though economic downturns do lead to some reductions in demand from this industry the demand for jewelry is constant. Push its price higher, when investors are worried about the economy and based on the increase in demand.

How much gold is there Gold is quite abundant in character but is difficult to extract. For instance, seawater contains gold -- but in such amounts it might cost more to extract than the gold will be worth. So there is a difference between the availability of gold and just how much gold there is in the world.

Advances in extraction procedures or materially higher gold prices could shift that amount. Gold was discovered close to undersea thermal vents in quantities that indicate it might be worth yanking if costs rose. Source: Getty Images. How can we get gold Although panning for gold was a frequent practice during the California Gold Rush, now it's mined from the ground.

A miner may actually produce gold as a by-product of its mining attempts. Miners begin by locating a place where they consider gold is located it can be obtained. Then local governments and agencies have to grant the company permission to develop and run a mine.

How well does gold hold its value in a downturn The answer depends upon how you put money into gold, however a fast look at gold prices relative to stock prices during the bear market of this 2007-2009 recession provides a telling example. Between Nov. 30, 2007, and June 1, 2009, the S&P 500 index fell 36%.

This is the most recent illustration of a substance and protracted stock recession, but it is also an especially dramatic one since, at the time, there were very real worries about the viability of their international financial system. Gold frequently performs relatively well as traders hunt out investments that are safe-haven, when capital markets are in chaos.