Gold: No Bold Predictions for the New Year

I’m not much of a fan when it comes to New Year’s predictions. There seems to be an almost fanatical obsession with ‘fortune telling’ when it comes to the financial markets.  And gold is no exception. Some twenty years ago when I was advising my financial planning clients to own gold shares as part of a diversified investment portfolio, my focus was more permanent and long-term.  Of course, that is the way I viewed other asset classes as well. There were certainly no ‘predictions’ about performance over the next year or so.  Since I retired in 2005, I have noticed that the time periods which we consider and focus on with respect to analysis and investing –  be it stocks, real estate, etc. –  have become increasingly short-term.  In fact, the financial markets seem to be more characteristic of casino-type activity.  Investing has become speculation.

First published here: Gold: No Bold Predictions for the New Year