Why is a bar of gold worth more than a bar of steel?
Why is a bar of gold worth more than a bar of steel?
Because gold is in higher demand with less supply.
That was easy.
financegeniuz wrote:
Why is a bar of gold worth more than a bar of steel?
Give your girlfriend a steel necklace and then get back to us with the answer.
That is the uneduated man's answer.
what if i found a rock with a special shape and defined it as valuable because it was so rare. then what?
Gold is also very nonreactive and an excellent conductor, making very good for electronics. I think sulfuric acid is one of the few substances that will react with gold.
[quote]financegeniuz wrote:
That is the uneduated man's answer.
Some days letsrun just makes me laugh..........
you my friend, do not define it as valuable, "the market" defines value and rarity.
financegeniuz wrote:
That is the uneduated man's answer.
what if i found a rock with a special shape and defined it as valuable because it was so rare. then what?
it is one of the few assets that is not also someone else's liability
Gold is a refuge for investments unlike other currencies whereby, during tough economic conditions, gold maintains its value unlike other currencies as well as stocks.
Godl is also in high demand worldwide culturally. AS someone jokingly said, try togive your girlfriend a steel necklace and see what happens. A gold earring, bracelet...would be more pricey and readily acceptable over almost any other metal because, among other things, it is resistant to oxidisation and holds its form over time. A gold crown tooth is more preferable to any other.
Then you would be my really good friend.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
I usually give me girlfriend a pearl necklace
Mtn Dew wrote:
Because gold is in higher demand with less supply.
Nothing else needs to be said about it then this. Forget about its looks, properties, "intrinsic value"....it's all about supply and demand. If a one trillion ton reserve of gold was discovered tomorrow, would gold have the same value?
well you might not be too smart but you have a bit of a wit
I think you guys are sort of missing the initial poster's point. Of course the market dictates value, that's a given. But why has it come to be the case that GOLD -- of all things -- bears so much value? Otherwords, why would a society deem this strange thing to be valuable? (apart from it being a rare thing.) How come certain rare insects are not worth millions of dollars? If I had some gold, I would obviously sell it for a lot of money. But if I had some gold and there was no demand for it in the market, I'd wipe my ass with it. Like what does gold actually DO? If you were on a desert island with a block of gold and a walkman, the personal value I'd attach to each would be about 5 cents for the gold and about a million dollars for the walkman.
This poster got my question.
Smee wrote:
I think you guys are sort of missing the initial poster's point. Of course the market dictates value, that's a given. But why has it come to be the case that GOLD -- of all things -- bears so much value? Otherwords, why would a society deem this strange thing to be valuable? (apart from it being a rare thing.) How come certain rare insects are not worth millions of dollars? If I had some gold, I would obviously sell it for a lot of money. But if I had some gold and there was no demand for it in the market, I'd wipe my ass with it. Like what does gold actually DO? If you were on a desert island with a block of gold and a walkman, the personal value I'd attach to each would be about 5 cents for the gold and about a million dollars for the walkman.
Something is only worth what people are willing to pay for it. Gold is shiny and yellow and looks good. I don't even think you could take a sliver of gold to a restaurant and pay your bill with it.
It's the same reason people buy really old antique cars at an auction. They aren't ever going to drive the thing, they just like the satisfaction of owning it for a month or so before they sell it at another auction in an attempt to make more money. Same with gold. Gold is worth nothing...yet it's worth everything.
The Answerer wrote:
Mtn Dew wrote:Because gold is in higher demand with less supply.
Nothing else needs to be said about it then this. Forget about its looks, properties, "intrinsic value"....it's all about supply and demand. If a one trillion ton reserve of gold was discovered tomorrow, would gold have the same value?
Much needs to be said about this. It's not all about supply and demand. Where does the demand come from? Gold is so expensive now because speculators have driven up the price (there is a gold bubble). Gold's price does not represent its value at all. It is the same situation as the housing bubble. Gold sitting in a vault is as useful as an vacant house in an empty neighborhood.
OP - like other posters have said, you should know that gold is actually a very useful, quality substance. Don't think that it doesn't have any practical value.