The Price of Gold in May 2022
Copyright © May 12, 2022 by Robert Wayne Atkins, P.E.
All Rights Reserved.
Introduction
During the course of my life I have seen the price of gold go up and go down.
The purpose of this article is to express my "opinion" about one of the reasons why the price of gold is currently going down.
Discussion
In 1900 the official price of gold was $20.67 per troy ounce.
In 1933 during the Great Depression, the USA Gold Confiscation Act of 1933 required all USA citizens to sell their gold to the USA government at the price of $20.67 per troy ounce before May 1, 1933. After the USA government had confiscated all the gold of its citizens, the USA government set the official price of gold at $35.00 per troy ounce. This was very good for the government of the USA but what impact do you think this had on the citizens (pawns) of the USA?
In 1934 the official price of gold was $35.00 per troy ounce.
In 1949 the official price of gold was $40.50 per troy ounce. I was born in 1949. This was shortly after the end of World War II and gold was still selling at a good price because the people of several nations had watched their "paper money" become worthless during the war and these people refused to be paid in "paper money." But everyone everywhere would accept a British "gold sovereign" coin in payment. Fortunately things are different now and everyone can use "digital money" instead of "paper money." (Is this better or worse?)
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| Gold Nuggets | Old Silver Coins | Silver Certificate | Federal Reserve Note |
In 1963 the name of a USA one-dollar bill was changed from a "Silver Certificate" to a "Federal Reserve Note." People had until June 1968 to redeem their Silver Certificates for Silver Dollar coins. After the deadline people could no longer exchange their Silver Certificates for Silver Dollar coins. In 1968 I was 19 years old and I did not understand why the USA government no longer wanted to put silver into my pocket change that I used to pay for things. In 1968 I could buy a deluxe hamburger, French fries, and a soft drink for $0.59. The reason I remember this is because I was a waiter at a fast food restaurant in 1966, 1967, and 1968.
In 1967 the official price of gold was $35.50 per troy ounce.
In 1971 President Nixon stopped selling USA gold at the current official price of $35 per troy ounce. And President Nixon refused to pay gold to foreign banks for the USA dollars that those foreign banks wanted to redeem.
In 2000 the official price of gold was $272.65 per troy ounce.
In March of 2022 the official price of gold reached a high of approximately $2,050 per troy ounce.
On May 12, 2022 the official price of gold is approximately $1,845 per troy ounce. Today the official price of gold is about 10% lower, or about $200 lower, than it was in March of this year.
Conclusion
In March of 2022 Russia was told that they could no longer use USA dollars to buy and sell their stuff to other countries. In order to continue to do business with other nations, Russia told those nations that they could still buy stuff from Russia and they could pay Russia in rubles or gold. A short time later several nations politely asked the Bank of England and the USA to please return their gold that they had deposited in the vaults of the Bank of England and the USA. Those nations are still waiting on the Bank of England and the USA to return their gold to them.
At this time it appears that the Bank of England and the USA have two basic options:
- Return the gold to the nations who own it.
- The Bank of England and the USA could keep the gold that doesn't belong to them and they could pay those other nations for their gold in USA Dollars or in British Pounds Sterling.
If option 2 above is selected, then it would be really advantageous to the Bank of England and to the USA if the "official price of gold" was at a relatively low level when this transaction was legally executed.
Do you remember the 1933 Gold Confiscation Act that was briefly mentioned above? Could the Bank of England and the USA be planning to use this strategy on a variety of foreign nations later this year? If this happens, then after the Bank of England and the USA legally own the gold that used to belong to those other nations, what do you think might happen to the price of gold if those other nations are forced to buy gold on the open market using the billions and billions and billions of their new USA dollars and British pounds sterling? What do you think might happen to the purchasing power of dollars and pounds sterling? (Note: If the dollar price of gold and silver and food begins to significantly increase then this may not mean that these items have suddenly become more valuable. It may mean that the purchasing power of the USA dollar is in "free fall.")
Although the above scenario is possible, the integrity of the Bank of England and the USA would never allow them to do something this despicable. Therefore please, please accept my apology for writing this article.
Respectfully,
Grandpappy.
Grandpappy's e-mail address is: RobertWayneAtkins@hotmail.com