History of the gold price
You have to drill through 250 tons of rock, then pulverize and chemically treat it to get enough gold to cast a single wedding ring. No wonder gold is one of the most expensive – and most sought-after – precious metals. Gold is measured in troy ounces (1/12 of a pound, or 31.1035 grams) which is 1.1 times as heavy as the avoirdupois ounce (1/16 of a pound, or 28.3495 grams).
Year | US$ high | low |
---|---|---|
2013 | 1690.50 | 1192.00 |
2012 | 1791.75 | 1540.00 |
2011 | 1889.70 | 1331.50 |
2010 | 1421.10 | 1058.00 |
2009 | 1056.90 | 858.69 |
2008 | 971.06 | 760.86 |
2007 | 808.31 | 630.35 |
2006 | 676.77 | 549.43 |
2005 | 509.42 | 424.08 |
2004 | 442.97 | 383.95 |
2003 | 407.67 | 328.21 |
2002 | 333.30 | 281.76 |
2001 | 283.32 | 260.75 |
2000 | 300.85 | 265.99 |
1990s | 416.54 | 256.20 |
1980s | 674.58* | 299.83 |
1970s | 463.67 | 34.95 |
1960s | 43.46 | 35.06 |
1950s | 35.13 | 34.73 |
1800s | 20.67 | 19.39 |
*In January 1980, the gold price hit $850 amid international crisis (the Islamic Revolution in Iran and the Soviet Union invading Afghanistan)
Source: Open Economics