Tony Daltorio 2016年7月11日
黃金因其價值和豐富的歷史受到全世界的歡迎，它已經融入到我們的文化中幾千年。含金的硬幣在公元前800年左右出現，純金幣在大約300之後的呂底亞科裡薩斯國王時期出現。縱觀歷史，人們一直因不同的原因投資黃金。下面是8個在當代投資黃的原因。
悠長的持有價值
與紙質貨幣不同，金幣或者其他黃金資產能在時間流逝中保存價值。人們把黃金當作一種傳承方式並利用它把財富傳遞給下一代。
美元疲軟
雖然美元是當今世界最重要的儲備貨幣，當美元在1998年和2008年相對其他主要貨幣貶值時，人們紛紛從美元湧向相對安全的黃金，這擡高了黃金的價格。黃金價格從1998年到2008年幾乎翻了三倍，在2008年初達到了1000美元每盎司的裡程碑，並且到2012年價格幾乎又翻倍，達到了1800至1900美元大關。美元貶值的原因有很多，包括該國龐大的預算和貿易赤字以及貨幣供應的大量增加。
通貨膨脹
黃金一直以來都被當作通脹的良好對沖手段，因為其價格會隨著生活成本的上升而上漲。在過去50年中人們多次見證了高通脹時期的黃金價格上漲和股票價格下跌。
通貨緊縮
通貨緊縮是指在一定時間内價格下降、商業活動放緩並且經濟體債務負擔過重，自從20世紀30年代的經濟大蕭條之後就沒發生過這種情況。在當時，隨著其他價格的大幅下降黃金的相對購買力大幅上漲。
地緣政治的不確定性
黃金不僅僅能在金融形勢不確定時保存價值，同樣也能在地緣政治具有不確定性時維持價值。它經常被稱為“危機商品”，因為局勢變得緊張時人們通常會湧向相對安全的黃金。在這些時期，黃金的表現往往會好於其他投資商品。例如，今年歐盟發生的危機而引起了幾次主要的黃金價格運動。黃金價格往往在民衆對政府信心降低時上漲。
供應限制
在20世紀90年代以來市場上的大部分黃金供應來自央行金庫中的金條。2008年全球央行對黃金的出售量開始降低。與此同時，自2000年開始黃金的開採產量開始降低。BullionVault.com的數據顯示，2000年黃金產量為2573公噸，到2007年下降到了2444公噸。一個新的金礦投產可能需要5到10年的時間。一般來說，黃金供應的減少勢必使其價格上漲。
需求增加
前幾年的新興市場財富增長增加了黃金的需求。在許多新興市場國家中，黃金已經融入了他們的文化。印度是世界上最大的黃金消費國之一，黃金在該國有包括珠寶制造在内的許多用途。例如，印度的婚禮通常在10月舉行，那時全球黃金的需求量將達到最高水平。在中國，金條是一種傳統的儲蓄方式，該國對黃金的需求一直很大。
投資者對黃金的需求同樣也在增長。許多人發現大宗商品，尤其是黃金，應當被放置在投資分類中。事實上，SPDR Gold Trust已經成為美國最大的ETF之一，並在其成立僅僅4年之後的2008年就成為世界上最大的黃金持有者。
分散投資
分散投資的關鍵是尋找一種與其他投資產品關系不密切相關的產品，而黃金恰恰與股票和其他金融工具成相反關系。近代歷史證明了這一點。
20世紀70年代是黃金的黃金時期，但是股票表現卻很糟糕。
20世紀80年代和90年代股票變現良好，但是黃金表現不佳。
2008年股票價格大跌，投資者轉向黃金。
適當多樣化的投資者同時投資黃金與股票和債券以減小整體波動和風險。
總結
黃金應該是一個多樣化投資組合的重要組成部分，因為在引起賬面投資（例如股票和債券）價格下跌的事件中黃金的價格會上漲。盡管黃金價格會在短期内波動，但是它一直能在長期中保存價值。多年來，黃金一直是通貨膨脹和貨幣貶值的一種對沖手段，因此黃金是一種值得考慮的投資。
8 Reasons To Own Gold
By Tony Daltorio | Updated July 11, 2016 — 4:03 PM EDT
Gold is respected throughout the world for its value and rich history, which has been interwoven into cultures for thousands of years. Coins containing gold appeared around 800 B.C., and the first pure gold coins were struck during the rein of King Croesus of Lydia about 300 years later. Throughout the centuries, people have continued to hold gold for various reasons. Below are eight reasons to own gold today.
A History of Holding Its Value
Unlike paper currency, coins or other assets, gold has maintained its value throughout the ages. People see gold as a way to pass on and preserve their wealth from one generation to the next.
Weakness of the U.S. Dollar
Although the U.S. dollar is one of the world's most important reserve currencies, when the value of the dollar falls against other currencies as it did between 1998 and 2008, this often prompts people to flock to the security of gold, which raises gold prices . The price of gold nearly tripled between 1998 and 2008, reaching the $1,000-an-ounce milestone in early 2008 and nearly doubling between 2008 and 2012, hitting around the $1800-$1900 mark. The decline in the U.S. dollar occurred for a number of reasons, including the country's large budget and trade deficits and a large increase in the money supply.
Inflation
Gold has historically been an excellent hedge against inflation, because its price tends to rise when the cost of living increases. Over the past 50 years investors have seen gold prices soar and the stock market plunge during high-inflation years.
Deflation
Deflation, a period in which prices decrease, business activity slows and the economy is burdened by excessive debt, has not been seen globally since the Great Depression of the 1930s. During that time, the relative purchasing power of gold soared while other prices dropped sharply.
Geopolitical Uncertainty
Gold retains its value not only in times of financial uncertainty, but in times of geopolitical uncertainty. It is often called the "crisis commodity," because people flee to its relative safety when world tensions rise; during such times, it often outperforms other investments. For example, gold prices experienced some major price movements this year in response to the crisis occurring in the European Union. Its price often rises the most when confidence in governments is low.
Supply Constraints
Much of the supply of gold in the market since the 1990s has come from sales of gold bullion from the vaults of global central banks. This selling by global central banks slowed greatly in 2008. At the same time, production of new gold from mines had been declining since 2000. According to BullionVault.com, annual gold-mining output fell from 2,573 metric tons in 2000 to 2,444 metric tons in 2007 (however, according to Goldsheetlinks.com, gold saw a rebound in production with output hitting nearly 2,700 metric tons in 2011.) It can take from five to 10 years to bring a new mine into production. As a general rule, reduction in the supply of gold increases gold prices.
Increasing Demand
In previous years, increased wealth of emerging market economies boosted demand for gold. In many of these countries, gold is intertwined into the culture. India is one of the largest gold-consuming nations in the world; it has many uses there, including jewelry. As such, the Indian wedding season in October is traditionally the time of the year that sees the highest global demand for gold (though it has taken a tumble in 2012.) In China, where gold bars are a traditional form of saving, the demand for gold has been steadfast.
Demand for gold has also grown among investors. Many are beginning to see commodities, particularly gold, as an investment class into which funds should be allocated. In fact, SPDR Gold Trust, became one of the largest ETFs in the U.S., as well as one of the world's largest holders of gold bullion in 2008, only four years after its inception.
Portfolio Diversification
The key to diversification is finding investments that are not closely correlated to one another; gold has historically had a negative correlation to stocks and other financial instruments. Recent history bears this out:
The 1970s was great for gold, but terrible for stocks.
The 1980s and 1990s were wonderful for stocks, but horrible for gold.
2008 saw stocks drop substantially as consumers migrated to gold.
Properly diversified investors combine gold with stocks and bonds in a portfolio to reduce the overall volatility and risk.
The Bottom Line
Gold should be an important part of a diversified investment portfolio because its price increases in response to events that cause the value of paper investments, such as stocks and bonds, to decline. Although the price of gold can be volatile in the short term, it has always maintained its value over the long term. Through the years, it has served as a hedge against inflation and the erosion of major currencies, and thus is an investment well worth considering.
本文翻譯由兄弟財經提供
文章來源：http://www.investopedia.com/articles/basics/08/reasons-to-own-gold.asp