GREAET FALLS — Gold and silver have experienced significant price volatility, driving increased activity at precious metals shops across Montana as investors seek alternatives to traditional financial markets.
At Grizzly Gold & Silver in Great Falls, store manager Jeremy Rolfsmeyer says the shop is experiencing unprecedented demand from both buyers and sellers.
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"Here in our shop, we're seeing a flood of people. Everybody from the people that are 90 years old and have had silver and gold since it's $9 an ounce, you know, cashing in, to people buying it by the hoards knowing that it's going to continue to rise," Rolfsmeyer said.
The surge in interest stems largely from concerns about the U.S. dollar's strength and broader economic uncertainty.
"The strength of the dollar is going down. Gold and silver are a safe haven asset," Rolfsmeyer said.
When confidence in financial markets drops, many investors turn to physical metals as a hedge against economic instability.
"Whenever consumers are scared or investors are scared or the trust in the paper market… they start feeling not too sure about that market, they will always flock to the physical in order to protect themselves," Rolfsmeyer said.
The shop has seen nearly equal amounts of buying and selling activity.
"It's been very much pretty close to 50-50 buy and sell," Rolfsmeyer said.
Financial advisor Greg Ferriter with Edward Jones says three key factors have influenced gold prices: macroeconomic conditions including U.S. dollar fluctuations and interest rate changes, geopolitical uncertainty, and varying market demand.
However, Ferriter cautions against making investment decisions based solely on price movements.
"We take a very individual approach to investments," Ferriter said.
"It needs to be centered around a plan. What's most important to this individual person and why are you wanting to buy it," Ferriter said.
While gold can play a role in investment portfolios, historical data shows other assets have performed differently over time.
"If I go back to 1960, the S&P 500, so 500 of the largest stocks, have returned an average of 11%, compared to gold at 8%, compared to inflation at 4%," Ferriter said.
Physical gold and silver ownership comes with additional considerations beyond market performance.
"Buying physical gold and silver, you own a physical asset, but that comes with storage considerations, it comes with insurance considerations, it comes with 'how easy is it for me to sell this' considerations," Ferriter said.
As precious metals prices continue to fluctuate, both local dealers and financial advisors emphasize the importance of understanding investment goals and conducting thorough research before making purchasing decisions.
This broadcast news story has been lightly edited for online publication with the assistance of AI for clarity, syntax, and grammar.
