Need advise on International Gold Funds

[jganguly]

Please advise re Intl Gold Funds. E.g. AIG World Gold Fund has given a return of 35% over the past year and 29% over two years. Do experts recommend such funds? What are the options? What are the factors to consider before investing (say 5% of portfolio in Intl Gold Funds)? Thank you.

 

[asterix24]

Dear Friend,

Gold funds are in different flavors. There is the Gold ETF which tracks the live price of 24-carat gold vs Gold MFs which invests in the Gold Mining companies. Apart from these there is the local jeweller who provides a SIP kind of scheme or the mint/bank from whom you can buy a 24-carat bar.

Most experts say that Gold should be 10% of your portfolio. Well, one may agree or disagree to this, but key factor is that Gold is an essential part of your portfolio. If you are married, buying ornaments is another option (thru' the SIP with a jeweller). If you aren't into ornaments, you can consider buying bars/coins from MINT/Banks and storing them. Alternatively, you can invest into Gold ETF which is a very good option (Hassle-free and no worry about storage).

Personally, I am not convinced about investing into Gold mining companies and would rather choose one of the aforementioned 3 options. I hope I have tried to provide a slightly different perspective.

Happy Investing !!

 

[milind]

Please make sure you see through the hype created by various AMCs regarding investing in gold, and about their own gold ETFs.

Prior to 2005, gold wasn't a great investment. Since 2005, it has gone from $500s to $1400 per ounce. Fundamentals have changed. Demand has grown substantially due to gold ETFs all over the world, as well as several sovereign funds allocating good chunk of money into Gold. Unknown if it continues to give 25% per year in future.