Oliver Conway

It's countries.

China has bought a huge amount of gold, added it to its reserves, and it's focused less on assets which are in U.S.

dollars, which, by the way, is another factor in the increase in price of gold because the U.S.

dollar has been going down.

down in value.

So if you buy stocks and bonds and things in US dollars, you're not going to get as much of a return on your money.

So it's this combination of factors, which has meant gold has just seen this staggering rise over the past couple of years.

Yeah, as you were saying more than doubling since January 2024.

Can it keep rising?

It can, yes, because the world, and we're talking geopolitically here, but we're also talking in terms of the markets, those two things very, very linked, of course, looks increasingly uncertain.

You've also got the role played by interest rates, by the way.

Interest rates are probably going to come down this year.

We don't know exactly when.

But when and if they do come down, that means that bonds are less appealing because your rate of return, the yield that you get, will be less because the interest rate is less.

So that's another reason to go on and invest in gold.

So, I mean, even in the course of today, even in the course of this conversation now, I've just noticed, Oliver, the price of gold has gone up.

It doesn't mean it's going to go up and up and up forever.

but it doesn't look like it has any signs of abating.

Business correspondent Nick Marsh.

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