It’s not every day you see shoppers whistling through the store with a cart full of gold. But looking at inflation today, isn’t that the best way to fight it? I think so. Forget bitcoin, get yourself some yellow metal, and become an inflation fighter. Katherine Hamilton discusses shoppers buying gold bars at Costco in The Wall Street Journal, writing:
Craig Beauregard and Julia Edwards were at Costco COST -0.11%decrease; red down pointing triangle shopping for groceries in December when they spotted a deal that was too good to pass up: a one-ounce bar of gold.
Beauregard, 33 years old, checked his phone and saw the bar’s retail price of $2,069 was $3 below its on-the-spot price in financial markets. The bar was also a Year of the Dragon edition, an auspicious keepsake ahead of the couple’s planned wedding in June. They threw it in their shopping cart next to a seven-pound bag of frozen chicken and a carton of Kirkland eggs.
Americans can’t get enough gold. Costco, which started offering gold bars last year online and in a few stores, has been selling out within hours. Consumers rated gold as a better investment than stocks and mutual funds in 2023 for the first time in a decade, according to a Gallup poll. The price has been hitting record highs.
Gold buyers, especially those on the younger side, say it is a hedge against catastrophe. Even people who aren’t building bunkers and predicting doomsday are increasingly preparing for worst-case scenarios. Natural disasters, wars in Ukraine and the Middle East and the Covid-19 pandemic are fresh in the minds of many. There is also fear of financial calamity.
Beauregard and Edwards said inflation has eroded their trust in the U.S. dollar. They increased their investment in physical silver and gold to diversify their portfolio, which also includes 401(k)s, stocks and crypto.
“It’s just nice to have options when we don’t really know what’s going on,” said Edwards, 29.
Just look at food inflation since 2020. Is it any wonder young people don’t have much faith in the value of their dollars?
Action Line: When you want to talk about fighting inflation and your investment portfolio, I’m here. In the meantime, click here to subscribe to my free monthly Survive & Thrive letter.
