However, there are many factors to take into account and it is not always the case that a share price will rise when the gold price increases. Mines are commercial enterprises and subject to problems such as flooding, subsidence and structural failure, as well as mismanagement, negative publicity, nationalization, theft and corruption. Such factors can lower the share prices of mining companies.
The performance of gold bullion is often compared to stocks as different investment vehicles. Gold is regarded by some as a store of value (without growth) whereas stocks are regarded as a return on value (i.e., growth from anticipated real price increase plus dividends). Stocks and bonds perform best in a stable political climate with strong property rights and little turmoil. The attached graph shows the value of Dow Jones Industrial Average divided by the price of an ounce of gold. Since 1800, stocks have consistently gained value in comparison to gold in part because of the stability of the American political system.[52] This appreciation has been cyclical with long periods of stock outperformance followed by long periods of gold outperformance. The Dow Industrials bottomed out a ratio of 1:1 with gold during 1980 (the end of the 1970s bear market) and proceeded to post gains throughout the 1980s and 1990s.[53] The gold price peak of 1980 also coincided with the Soviet Union's invasion of Afghanistan and the threat of the global expansion of communism. The ratio peaked on January 14, 2000 a value of 41.3 and has fallen sharply since.
One argument follows that in the long-term, gold's high volatility when compared to stocks and bonds, means that gold does not hold its value compared to stocks and bonds:[54]
To take an extreme example [of price volatility], while a dollar invested in bonds in 1801 would be worth nearly a thousand dollars by 1998, a dollar invested in stocks that same year would be worth more than half a million dollars in real terms. Meanwhile, a dollar invested in gold in 1801 would by 1998 be worth just 78 cents.[54]
Investing directly in commodities, such as gold or oil, tends to be more difficult for investors than investing in stocks and bonds. A major reason for this is that stocks and bonds are readily transferable and easily accessible to the average investor. Traditionally, commodities have been more difficult to invest in due to the complex way in which they trade through thefutures and options markets. In other words, an investor can't just buy a barrel of oil.
Gold is more accessible to the average person because an investor can easily purchase gold bullion (gold in its physical form), from a dealer or, in some cases, from a bank. However, with the advent of more advanced financial instruments, gold, along with other commodities, has become much easier to invest in without having to buy the physical metal. There are now exchange traded funds (ETF), that replicate the movements of the underlying commodity, giving investors direct exposure. While not every commodity has an ETF, both gold and oil have ETFs. For example, the SPDR Gold Shares (ticker symbol GLD) trades on the New York Stock Exchange and can be traded at any time throughout the trading day. Each share of the ETF represents one-tenth of an ounce of gold, so if gold is currently $600 an ounce, the gold ETF will trade at $60 per share. This investment product is one of the easiest and least expensive ways to access the gold market. (To learn more, see Introduction To Exchange-Traded Funds.)
In general, investors looking to invest in gold directly have three choices: they can purchase the physical asset, they can purchase an ETF that replicates the price of gold, or they can trade futures and options in the commodities market.