All of your life you are told that gold is rare, and that is why it is so valuable. People say the same of diamonds, yet diamonds can easily be recreated in a lab. Gold cannot be. In fact, to better understand why gold is so rare and why it cannot be made in a lab, you have to first know how gold is formed. When you purchase or sell gold, it becomes more understandable as to what drives the prices of this precious metal.
Not Even Supernovas Can Create Gold All the Time
Gold atoms are extremely heavy. Extremely heavy atoms require explosive events to create them, but even supernovas may not be enough to create gold. Scientists have studied meteorites and chunks of the moon and other planets. The conclusion is always the same; gold is not just rare on Earth, it is rare through the known universe. Supernovas may help create some gold, but even then the conditions have to be absolutely perfect, and such conditions are totally random.
Nuclear Power Cannot Produce Gold Either
When nuclear power came into use, scientists did repeat testing not just to see the impact or force of such a weapon, but also to see if they could somehow make gold. The results were that no gold was ever created this way, and since gold could not be created through nuclear power blasts, scientists realized that the limited amount of gold that existed on Earth was finite.
Finite and Lack of Availability
So all the gold that has been found, mined, and purified is all there is. That is what makes gold so rare, and why it claims such a high price per each gram and each ounce. Availability is another issue when it comes to purchasing and selling gold. If a buyer is hording gold and not selling it, and demand is already high, it drives the prices up even more. A perceived lack of available gold for sale drives the market upward, which may be great for sellers but is not so great for buyers.
Fluctuating Gold Prices
Hence, gold prices fluctuate constantly. It all depends on how many people are sitting on personal gold hordes and how many people decide to get cash for gold rather than sit on it longer. The best rule of thumb where gold is concerned is wait to sell; do not wait to buy.
