Gold has fascinated humans for ages, mostly due to its gleaming beauty and unfaltering value. For so long now, this metal has been a symbol of wealth and power and even though the traditional applications seem to have faded off, it’s still a popular investment due to its wide range of uses.
Here’s what you want to know about the modern uses of gold.
Why Care About Gold’s Uses?
Before reviewing the modern uses of gold, it’s a good idea to know why you should even stop to care. Well, the main reason is to understand how the concept of supply and demand gives gold its high value.
As a buyer or seller, you should understand that if one of gold’s greatest demand drivers – jewellery for instance – hits a block, the value of this precious metal will decline a big deal. For any investor, that means reduced returns.
Even those who aren’t investors but are trying to sell the gold they no longer use may need to understand what uses are dominating the market at the moment and how that’s affecting the value of gold. That way, it’s possible to determine if you’re getting a fair deal during the sale.
However, that’s the longer method. The easiest and most reliable way to sell your gold is to engage a trustworthy dealer like Leicester Gold Buyers since they have a strong reputation for offering decent prices.
So, Then, What Are the Top Uses of Gold?
Gold is valuable in several industries mainly due to its unique properties such as inertness, conductivity, biocompatibility, malleability, and reflectivity. Here are the three top modern uses of gold:
1. Jewellery and Medals/Awards
One of the most notable features of gold is its timeless beauty, which makes it a lasting favourite in the Jewellery industry. In truth, this industry uses 46% of all mined gold, which is nearly half of all the gold in the world. What’s more, most of this gold is usually of the purest form, which is why it’s usually more expensive compared to other forms of gold such as coins and bars.
According to Investopedia, India and China have – for quite some time now – been the largest consumers of gold jewellery. The United States comes in as the third in the list of the top consumers of gold jewellery in the world.
Gold has also been used to signify excellence and victory for some time now. From Olympic gold medals for those in the top positions to the more prestigious awards like the Nobel Prize, gold has been the easily preferred metal for celebrating and honouring those who achieve greatness.
2. Currency and Investment
Gold is a quite reliable indicator of wealth. From ancient coins to contemporary bullion, it’s been used to store value through different civilisations. In most cases, it’s the central banks in different countries that purchase the most gold to insure themselves against weakening reserve currencies.
The same reason banks run to gold for protection is the same reason investors see it as a “safe-haven” asset. That’s usually because gold tends to retain its value even in times of economic uncertainty.
3. ELectronics
The last on the list is the electronics industry, preferring gold to other metals due to its superior conductivity and corrosion resistance. While this industry doesn’t use that much gold (the numbers sticking at around 5% of the annual demand on a global scale), every gram matters when it comes to the efficiency and performance of the different electronics we use, from PCs to smartphones and various types of connectors.
Sell Your Old Gold With Maximum Peace of Mind
As mentioned before, understanding the top demand drivers for gold is one of the factors that help investors make more informed decisions. While selling your old unused collection of gold jewellery and coins may not be that much of a serious decision, you still want to get the best value, which is where reliable dealers like Leicester Gold Buyers come in.
Thanks to a reputation for easy and rewarding processes, you are sure the price they will offer will be, by far, better than you can find elsewhere. Visit midlandsgoldbuyers.co.uk today to find out more!