In 1999, gold reached rock bottom at $252.50 per ounce. At the end of 2023, the price was over eight times higher. The Bank of England sold half the U.K.’s reserves below $300 per ounce at the turn of this century. Ironically, London is the hub of international gold trading. While the U.K. government at the time declared gold as a barbarous relic from yesteryear, few other countries parted with gold reserves. Over the past years, central banks, monetary authorities, and governments have been buying gold hand-over-fist, increasing reserves of the metal with the longest history as a means of exchange.
Gold closed 2023 at over $2,070 per ounce as the bull market continued. As gold celebrates its quarter-of-a-century anniversary in a bull market, the prospects for higher prices remain intact.
