What's gold worth?

I don't think anyone knows!

In the U.S., they may say, about 1500 Dollars per ounce. In Europe, 360 Euros an ounce; In Japan, 123,000 Yen; In the U.K., 930 Pounds Sterling.

But actually that is only saying what their currency is worth. Currencies fluctuate in value. Gold, not so much.

Gold is a precious metal, hard to find, useful for many things. You could set its value by the amount of effort it takes to get it out of the ground and refine it to a standard of purity. Or, you may just say what a one-time mentor told me about the value of a piece of real estate: It is worth what one man is willing to pay for it.

But. gold is not real estate. A building lot in Boston is priced differently than is the same size lot in Beaumont, TX. An ounce of 24 carat gold is the same the world over. It is the standard of value. Instead of saying an ounce of gold is worth $1500, we should say one dollar is worth 1/1500 of an ounce of gold. In a year from now, the dollar may be worth 1/2000, or 1/1000. That will depend on the action of the government.

You can make a ring out of a piece of gold. A dollar bill can be traded for some amount of some commodity, but has no value in itself. Currencies are a representation of value. Gold has actual value. Like the current flock of TV commercials say... gold has never been worth zero!