Gold price July 31, 2024
5 min read
How much is gold per ounce?
Gold was trading at $2,421.14 per troy ounce as of 9 a.m. ET. That’s a +1.43% change since yesterday. The precious metal is up 17.17% since Jan. 1, 2024.
Over the last day, its highest trading price was $2,426.86, while its lowest was $2,383.55.
Current gold prices
You can find gold spot prices in U.S. dollars under the label XAU/USD. In this case, the price shown is for one troy ounce and expressed in U.S. dollars. Foreign markets using different currencies have different listings. For example, there’s XAU/EUR for trading in euros or XAU/GBP for British pounds.
Gold’s spot price represents the price at which gold can be exchanged and delivered. Prices are typically listed in cost per troy ounce. But prices can also be listed in units like grams or kilograms. Troy ounces are units used almost exclusively for weighing precious metals. One troy ounce represents 1.097 standard ounces.
Gold price chart
The chart below shows how the spot price of gold is trending over the year. The data is as of 9 a.m. ET and doesn’t display intraday highs or lows.
Gold is up 17.17% from the beginning of the year, as of 9 a.m. ET. The 52-week intraday high reached $2,483.74 on July 17, 2024, and the 52-week intraday low dropped to $1,810.10 on Oct. 6, 2023.
Keep in mind that gold prices change in real time. Spot prices when you purchase may be significantly different if and when you decide to sell.
Investing in gold
Buying physical gold is one of the most direct ways to invest in the asset. It can also involve storage or insurance costs.
The “spread” is the difference between buying and selling prices when trading physical gold. That spread can ultimately reduce investor gains. Dealers include their own markups and fees into those spreads. As a result, you might pay more to purchase gold than the current spot price. Similarly, your sale price might be less than what gold is trading at.
Some alternatives include gold exchange-traded funds, certificates and trusts. These can offer additional liquidity and make transactions easier. However, these methods usually include management fees, and they might not track the price of gold precisely.
So, spot prices are really more of a benchmark. The cost to buy or sell gold will likely include transaction costs or fees.
Precious metals prices
Precious metals are often used as investment vehicles but also have industrial uses. Like gold, the price of commodities like palladium, silver and platinum varies based on market forces. Due to their industrial applications, they also have other sources of demand.
Silver spot prices
Some investors use Silver to hedge against economic volatility. Besides its monetary value, silver has plenty of industrial uses. Precious metals are used in medicine, electronics, automobiles, and more. As a result, it trades differently than gold.
The price of silver opened at $28.66 per ounce, as of 9 a.m. ET. That’s up 2.95% from the previous day’s silver price per ounce and up 19.79% since the beginning of the year.
The lowest trading price within the last day: $27.65 per ounce. The highest silver spot price in the last 24 hours: $28.88 per ounce.
Price of platinum
Platinum is rarer than gold or silver. The precious metal is used in catalytic converters to reduce exhaust fumes. As the auto industry pushes for cleaner cars, demand could rise, making platinum prices volatile and more challenging to predict.
The price of platinum opened at $975.50 per ounce, as of 9 a.m. ET. That’s up 1.96% from yesterday’s platinum price per ounce and down 1.24% year to date.
The lowest trading price within the last 24 hours: $956.13 per ounce. The highest platinum spot price in the last 24 hours: $975.75 per ounce.
Palladium spot prices
Palladium is also essential in catalytic converters. Stricter emissions standards have also boosted the demand for precious metals. That rising demand and the metal’s scarcity have led to significant price volatility.
The price of palladium is $924.16 per ounce, as of 9 a.m. ET. That’s up 3.30% from yesterday’s palladium price per ounce and down 15.95% year to date.
The lowest trading price within the last 24 hours: $886.03 per ounce. The highest palladium spot price in the last 24 hours: $934.25 per ounce.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
Gold can be a volatile commodity with significant short- and long-term price swings.
Many factors contribute to whether investing now will pay off. Consider your own investment goals, time horizon and risk tolerance. Also, forecasts about the gold market and the broader outlook for the economy should be considered.
People have long viewed gold as a way to hedge against inflation. It’s also considered one way to diversify your portfolio from traditional assets like stocks or bonds. However, predicting the future direction of gold prices remains difficult, if not impossible.
The highest price gold ever reached was $2,483.74 on July 17, 2024.
One notable recent high includes the yellow metal’s high of $1,971.17 per troy ounce in August 2020. This surge can be partially attributed to the economic uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.
The global outbreak of COVID-19 brought about unprecedented economic challenges. With central banks worldwide implementing low interest rate policies and massive fiscal stimulus packages to support their economies, there were concerns about potential inflation and the devaluation of fiat currencies. In this scenario, some investors turned to gold as a safe asset, given its history as a store of value during times of economic instability.
Geopolitical tensions, trade wars, and supply chain disruptions during this period further contributed to investors seeking refuge in assets deemed more stable, and gold has historically been a preferred choice for many. As a result, demand for gold increased, driving its price to a record high in August 2020.
Remember that while the COVID-19 pandemic’s economic repercussions significantly contributed to gold’s price rise in 2020, other factors likely also played a part.
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