Why is “Gold” hard to find these days?

Gold is known to be a Safe Haven that many investors accumulate, but did you know that now gold is becoming increasingly rare, and gold may remain on earth for only the next 19 years? Today, ACU PAY will talk about the scarcity of gold.

According to the World Gold Council (WGC), the global gold mining industry is facing difficulties in maintaining gold production growth, while gold mines are becoming increasingly scarce.

John Reed, chief marketing strategist for WGC, said, “In Q1/2024, global gold production increased 4 % when comparing year by year, but on a large scale, gold production began to weaken in 2016 and 2018, and there was no significant growth thereafter.

According to the International Trade Association (ITA), gold production in mines around the world rose only 0.5 % in 2023, CNBC reported.

Gold production in the world mines increased 1.35% in 2022, after a 2.7% increase in 2021. In 2020, gold production in the world mines decreased by 1% which was the first decline in 10 years.

WGC notes that large gold mines require significant capital expenditures and significant exploration and development. In addition, it also takes an average of 10-20 years before the mines are ready for production, resulting in delays in finding gold for us to trade. Even if the mine begins the exploration process, there may be very low levels of gold.

According to the report, gold all over the world that has enough gold ore to be certificated as gold mine is only 10%. Mr. Reeds also said that in addition to the gold search process, the mining company faces difficulties in obtaining government approval, which is an important step before the mining company can begin operations, many of which take years to complete

The world's gold can be mined for only 19 years more

Currently, approximately 187,000 metric tons of gold have been mined, mainly from China, South Africa, and Australia. United States Geological Survey (USGS) estimates that the gold reserves can be mined at around 57,000 tons.

The USGS data are only preliminary estimates based on current gold mining rates and proven gold reserves. In fact, other factors may affect gold depletion.

In addition to the discovery process and development of large-scale gold mining projects, mining companies face another challenge: the process of obtaining government permits, which is often complicated, takes years to meet the requirements.

What make ‘gold’ special

What makes gold valuable is its characteristics. Gold is durable to many substances or has quality durability that cannot be easily destroyed. Gold is resistant to time, water, and flame, and has a melting point of 1,063 degrees Celsius. In addition, gold is easily molded and ultimately, this metal is extremely rare, making it valuable on the market.

The advantages of ‘gold’

Gold also has a financial advantage compared to other assets. It has no expiry time and deterioration. Most of the gold found remains intact, easy to carry, split into pieces, and unlike other metals such as diamonds.

Breaking gold into pieces does not change its value. In the end, it cannot be falsified or inflation because central banks cannot produce gold like paper money.

All of this makes gold valuable in many ways and produces profitable profit only when miners can discover new sources of production and provide another alternative to invest in gold in the future.

References from
wealthmeup / ngthai / bangkokbiznews