Reporter Reads - Gold is booming - but how safe is it for investors, really? - BBC Sounds
Our international business correspondent has been looking into the price of gold.
www.bbc.co.uk
Released On: 13 May 2025 ....... Available for over a year
Gold is certainly on a roll. Its price has increased by more than 40% over the past year. In late April it rose above $3,500 (£2,630) per troy ounce (a measurement for precious metals). This marked a record, even allowing for inflation, exceeding the previous peak reached in January 1980. Back then the dollar price was $850, or $3,493 in today's money.
*on a roll: (도박에서) 계속 이겨, 승운을 타서; 순조롭게
*troy ounce: 금, 은 등 귀금속과 보석의 중량단위
Economists have attributed this to a variety of factors. Principal among them has been the unpredictable changes in US trade policy, introduced by the Trump administration, the effects of which have shaken the markets. Gold, by contrast, is seen by many as a solid investment. Fears about geopolitical uncertainty have only added to its allure. Many investors have come to appreciate the relative stability offered by a commodity once dismissed by the billionaire Warren Buffett as "lifeless" and "neither of much use nor procreative".
*attribute A to B: A를 B의 탓으로 돌리다
*principal: 주요한; 원금, 본전; 교장; (뒤에 명사가 생략된 형태로) 주인공
ex) principal boy (판토마임의) 남자 주인공 // principal girl (판토마임의) 여자 주인공
*allure: 매력
*commodity: 상품, 물품; 원자재; (유용한) 것
*procreative: 출산력이 있는, 다산의, 생식의
"It's the kind of conditions that we consider a bit of a perfect storm for gold," explains Louise Street, senior markets analyst at the World Gold Council, a trade association funded by the mining industry.
*mining industry: 채굴 산업, 광(산)업
"It's the focus on potential inflationary pressures. Recessionary risks are rising, you've seen the IMF [International Monetary Fund] downgrading economic forecasts very recently…"
*downgrade: 떨어뜨리다; 격하시키다
But what goes up can also come down. While gold has a reputation as a stable asset, it is not immune to price fluctuations. In fact, in the past, major surges in the price have been followed by significant falls.
*what goes up: 올라간 것, 오른 것
*it is not immune to price fluctuations: 가격 변동에 영향을 받지 않는 것이 아니다, 가격 변동에 취약하다
*immune: 면역성이 있는; ~의 영향을 받지 않는, ~이 면제되는
So what is the risk this could happen again, leaving many of today's eager investors nursing big losses?
*nurse: 간호하다, 돌보다