Pirates once searched the seas for chests full of gold coins and jewels. Today, people still hunt for gold. Of course, most people must pay for the expensive metal. And now they have to spend more money than ever before. On October 7, the price of gold hit $4,000 per ounce (28 g) for the first time in history!
Gold has been a precious metal for thousands of years. It has been a symbol of wealth and power across the planet. For example, rulers of ancient Egypt wore jewelry and fancy clothing made from gold. People also used gold to trade with each other. In China, small squares of gold were used as a form of money more than 3,000 years ago. And many countries (including the United States) have produced gold coins as a common form of currency.
For most of the 1800s and early 1900s, gold cost only about $20 per ounce. But by the 1970s, the value began to jump — growing to be worth hundreds of dollars for each ounce! The price of gold cost $1,000 per ounce for the first time in 2008, and then it doubled to reach $2,000 in August 2020. The value of gold reached $3,000 for the first time in mid-March 2025. Less than seven months later, the value has smashed another new all-time record as the cost of gold finally hit $4,000 per ounce.
But what makes gold so valuable? Well, there isn’t very much of it in the world, so the global supply is limited. Companies may mine in the Earth’s crust to get the rare resource, and many people try to find small pieces in riverbeds. The metal also does not rust or wear out, which means it lasts forever. It is the most malleable element on Earth, so it can be hammered into very thin sheets without breaking. It even melts easily, which is why workers often turn gold into coins or jewelry. And it doesn’t hurt that gold is shiny and, well, golden.
Gold often becomes more valuable during uncertain times. When the struggles, the prices of other goods (such as oil or stocks) may fall. Yet gold generally holds its value even during tough times. For example, the start of the coronavirus pandemic caused millions of people to lose their jobs in 2020, and many businesses were forced to close. The price of gold soared to new records when that happened five years ago.
New events are making people feel unsure about the economy once again. U.S. President Donald Trump has recently added to goods from many other countries. These new taxes have created a trade war, with other nations (such as Canada and China) raising taxes on goods from the United States. Because people are worried about the effects on the economy, more investors are buying gold bars, coins, and jewelry. And the price of this precious metal keeps going up, up, and up.
Some financial experts predict that the price of gold will continue to rise over the next few months. For example, a financial company called Goldman Sachs said that it now believes the value of gold will reach $4,900 per ounce by December 2026. However, Bank of America warned its customers that the price of gold could slip if it faces a “correction” in the market. Time will tell whether the golden value continues to climb over the next year.
By Russell Kahn (Russ)
Updated October 7, 2025, 5:00 P.M. (ET)
