Gold - The Currency Of Last Resort

Gold last traded at $1,971 an ounce. Silver at $24.08 an ounce.

NEWS SUMMARY: Precious metal prices shot upward, with gold reaching toward $2,000/oz and silver fast approaching $25/oz., on continued safe-haven buying. U.S. stocks traded mixed as investors weighed growing negative economic sentiment with strong tech earnings.

Dimitrov/Seeking ALpha--- "The way I see gold is as a special form of currency. A currency that becomes relevant only at times when the risk for the global financial system runs very high. Not the risk of recession nor the equity risk, but rather the risk of the stability of the monetary regime. This is my reason to holding gold as part of my portfolio - as a form of insurance against monetary and fiscal authorities losing control or simply transitioning to a new system. Everyone would agree that one of the most important drivers of the price of gold is the level or real interest rate in the economy and for most of the time this is correct. Even if it's one of the most important drivers for gold during normal times, there is an even more powerful driver of gold prices - the overall risk for the existing monetary regime....The risk for the current monetary regime is significant and even if authorities manage the transition towards a new monetary system well, the level of uncertainty around it would provide a tailwind for gold prices....Holding gold as part of an equity portfolio in a barbell like strategy is my approach to ride the current wave of uncertainty and high risk. I don't see the precious metal as a speculative investment, nor as a simple inflation hedge. The way I see gold is a currency of last resort, which preserves purchasing power over the long term and gains ground at inflection points when the existing monetary system becomes less sustainable."