Investors Go For Gold As Prices Surge—But This Asset Is Still The Best Investment, Poll Finds
Topline
Americans favor gold as the strongest long-term investment at the largest proportion in over a decade, a new survey found, as equities lose favor while the precious metal hovers at a near record high.
Gold is back in vogue.
Key Facts
About a quarter (26%) of Americans view gold as the best investment over the long term, according to a Gallup poll conducted between April 3 and April 25 among 1,013 American adults.
That’s the highest faith in gold since 2012 and a nearly two-fold increase from last year.
It’s also the first time since 2013 more respondents have favored gold over stocks.
Accompanying that rising faith was declining trust in property ownership: About a third (34%) of respondents named real estate as the best long-term investment, still the top pick but down from 45% last year and at its lowest level since 2018.
Just 18% of respondents identified stocks and mutual funds as the best investment category, its lowest rate since 2012 after major stock indexes suffered their worst year in over a decade in 2022.
And belief in the two other listed categories—low- and high-yield savings accounts and bonds—surged to multi-year highs, reflecting the higher interest-rate environment.
Key Background
Spot gold trades at about $2,045 per ounce, up 11% year-to-date and just shy of its 2020 peak. Various destabilizing factors including geopolitical tensions stemming from the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Federal Reserve’s aggressive monetary policy and the U.S. dollar’s decline are behind gold’s surge in value. Spot prices of fellow precious metals platinum and silver are each up nearly 20% over the last year. Yields for U.S. Treasury notes and higher-yield savings accounts have spiked since early 2022 thanks to higher interest rates and banking instability, helping bolster bonds and savings accounts’ popularity. Equity and real estate markets have struggled compared to other asset classes recently, with the S&P 500 and median U.S. existing home sale prices down roughly 10% from their respective 2021 and 2022 peaks.
Surprising Fact
The proportion of Americans who think now is a good time to buy stocks is at the lowest level in 17 years, according to an April CNBC survey.
Tangent
The number of respondents who thought cryptocurrency was the top long-term investment has halved since last year, shrinking from 8% to 4%. Bitcoin is down about 40% since last spring, as a rash of high-profile collapses among crypto titans like FTX and Silvergate Capital shook faith in the industry.
Further Reading
Why Gold Is A Good Investment Right Now—And May Be Set For A New Record Price (Forbes)
Silver Prices Surge As ‘Perfect Storm’ Fuels Dollar Decline: Why The Precious Metal Could Still Rally Another 18% (Forbes)
Americans’ Belief In Stock Investing Hits 17-Year Low, Survey Finds (Forbes)
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