Editor's Note: With so much market volatility, stay on top of daily news! Get caught up in minutes with our speedy summary of today's must-read news and expert opinions. Sign up here! Tuesday, the WGC celebrated the 30 anniversary of its quarterly and annual Gold Demand Trends report, which looks at all pillars of physical demand in the global marketplace, including jewelry purchases to investor demand and central bank gold holdings.
"With a 5.8% annualized return over the period, gold has outperformed cash, bonds and commodities," the analysts said. "Gold has also maintained a very low average correlation to stocks, even rising in times of turmoil and performing positively in five out of the past seven recessions, helping investors to reduce their portfolio losses."
Analysts at the WGC noted that jewelry and technology demand are now counterbalances to investment and central bank demand. At the same time, two major gold-consuming nations, India and China, saw significant growth in their middle classes, meaning more consumers could buy more gold. The report said that in the 1990s, Asian demand represented about 45% of the global market; today, the region represents about 60%.