Long considered to be resistant to economic and market forces, the yellow metal has fallen on harsh days, but still holds promise.
Sleep is my greatest enemy.” This tweet from Reed Hastings, CEO of Netflix, on April 17, 2017, shortly before signing up its 100 millionth customer, has two thought tangents: One, that Netflix is not as much worried about competition from, say, YouTube or Amazon, as much as it is positive about its prospects, given the vastness of the market; two, customers are likely to dump Netflix only if a majority of its content turns bad at once, which looks less probable.
The same could have been said about gold in the noughties. The world was its oyster, with each person a prospective customer. Gold prices then had everything going in their favour. When oil rose, gold also rose, confirming its value as a hedge against inflation. When dollar fell, gold rose, confirming its value as an alternative currency.
When geopolitical tension broke out, gold rose too, confirming its value as a hedge against uncertainty. Year after year, gold prices continued to register gains, giving no signs of letting up, even though they had been going up for one full decade. The yearly gains were modest, though, if you were to compare with equities, but enough to beat inflation, and enough to give a sense of stability that other asset classes failed to deliver.
And with booming populations in China and India, the traditional affinity towards the physical gold as jewellery, coins, etc magnified its demand. Additionally, central banks’ buying gave a floor, while miners’ de-hedging and supply bottlenecks gave more momentum to upsides. In other words, with so many diverse supportive factors pushing demand higher, it was safe to say that gold knew no competitors and was poised to continue edging higher, year after year, for eternity.
And yet, gold prices did crash in September 2011 after hitting a record peak of $1,920.3 per troy ounce. Not only did it crash, gold also broke away from the decadelong trend of registering yearly gains. Why did this happen?
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة March 29, 2019 من Forbes India.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة March 29, 2019 من Forbes India.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
Home-Cooked Meal Is Now Greatly Valued
The pandemic has also brought with it an improved focus on hygiene, use of technology in dining, rise of cloud kitchens and resurgence in popularity of Indian ingredients
Paytm 3.0 - Reaching Near Breakeven In Two Years
As of 2020, Vijay Shekhar Sharma’s super app for financial services had run up losses in thousands of crores. Now, as digital payments gets yet another boost courtesy Covid-19, he’s hopeful of reaching near breakeven in two years
THE PANDEMIC HAS CAUSED WOMEN GREATER LABOUR PAIN
Covid-19 has shown that women are more likely to face the brunt of job losses than men, and find fewer opportunities when they want to resume. That apart, several have to deal with increased hours of unpaid work at home and even domestic abuse
LEADERSHIP WILL BE ABOUT SEEING THE BIGGER PICTURE
Leaders must not only guard their teams first during a crisis, but also deal with stakeholders with respect and dignity. And apart from pursuing business goals, they should remain committed to our planet and the environment
PHILANTHROPY SHOULD BE HUMBLE, BUT NOT MODEST
Apart from building a flexible and resilient framework for the future, philanthropists, civil society and the government must work in tandem so that every rupee is absorbed on the ground
INTEGRATED HEALTH CARE, TECH WILL DISRUPT SECTOR
While clinical research will get a boost, having a skilled workforce and public spending on health care will be challenges in the near term
DIGITALISATION WILL HELP IN VALUE CREATION
As the pandemic brings technology and innovation to the core of business and daily life, the next decade will see about 150 million digital-first families in India
Industry 4.0: Climate Revolution?
Augmenting sustainability alongside digital capabilities is an economic, competitive and global opportunity for India’s businesses, but regulations need to reflect intent
EV Dream Still Miles Away
Electric vehicles have remained a buzzword in India for years. But not much has moved on ground due to high upfront costs, range anxiety and charging infrastructure
Living Waters
A virus has caused us to scramble for oxygen but our chokehold on the environment is slowly strangling the very waters that breathe life into us. The virus is a timely reminder: We are merely consumers, not producers of life’s breath on this planet
