An Impressionistic View of the 'Real' Price of Gold Around the World

29 Pages Posted: 19 Sep 2012 Last revised: 20 Sep 2012

See all articles by Claude B. Erb

Claude B. Erb

TR

Campbell R. Harvey

Duke University - Fuqua School of Business; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

Date Written: September 18, 2012

Abstract

The “real” price of gold in the U.S. is historically high, relative to its history as an actively tradable asset. But what about the real price of gold in other countries? It turns out that, in our impressionistic sample of 23 countries, the real price of gold is high everywhere. The real price of gold is high in “troubled” countries as well as in “safe” countries. If the real price of gold is a barometer of perceived troubles then there is trouble everywhere. Or, alternatively, gold is just expensive everywhere.

This research is motivated by our earlier paper, Erb and Harvey (2012), The Golden Dilemma.

Keywords: Gold value, Gold fundamentals, Inflation, Real gold, Foreign exchange

JEL Classification: G11, G12, G13, G28, F31, E31

Suggested Citation

Erb, Claude B. and Harvey, Campbell R., An Impressionistic View of the 'Real' Price of Gold Around the World (September 18, 2012). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2148691 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2148691

Claude B. Erb

TR ( email )

CA 90272
United States

Campbell R. Harvey (Contact Author)

Duke University - Fuqua School of Business ( email )

Box 90120
Durham, NC 27708-0120
United States
919-660-7768 (Phone)

HOME PAGE: http://www.duke.edu/~charvey

National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

1050 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02138
United States

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