Gold has been regarded for a long time as a safe haven commodity that investors and governments use to protect their wealth.
While the metal posted a small gain in 2022 for investors in the U.S., it posted significant gains against other currencies.
This graphic based on data from the World Gold Council assesses gold’s price performance against major currencies in 2022.
There is a direct correlation between the price of gold and the U.S. dollar since gold is mostly traded globally in U.S. dollars.
In 2022, record-high inflation and slow global economic growth were expected to send gold to new record highs.
However, gold performance against the USD was impacted by rising interest rates in the U.S., which pushed the Dollar Index to a 20-year high.
Almost every other currency around the world declined against the dollar in 2022. As a result, investors outside of the U.S. looked towards gold as a hedge against inflation.
While investors in the U.S. saw a 0.4% gain with gold in 2022, the metal posted over a 10% return against the Indian rupee, pound sterling, Japanese yen, and the Turkish lira.
Several analysts are projecting record highs for gold in 2023 as the U.S. Fed is forecasted to slow its pace of rate hikes.
Gold’s price is also expected to be supported by increasing demand from central banks that are looking to diversify foreign exchange holdings and reduce exposure to the dollar.
In addition, gold bars and coins should remain in high demand thanks to an economic rebound in China, the biggest gold-consuming market in the world.
According to Goldman Sachs, gold’s price is expected to hover around $1,860 per ounce towards the end of 2023.
(This article first appeared in the Visual Capitalist Elements)
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