Recent data from the World Gold Council showed that global demand in the first quarter was 1,034.5 tons. Gold supply during the same time frame was 1,032 tons. As you can see, supply is coming up short of demand.
Demand for gold is steady worldwide. Investors in Europe, especially in the UK and Germany, purchased eight times more gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs) than investors in the United States
Gold approached $1,570 an ounce, extending a rally to a record, on bets that the dollar will extend a slump, enhancing the allure of the metal as a store of value. Silver posted for the biggest monthly gain in 28 years.
“Silver’s run is related to the rise in gold,” said Michael Cuggino, who helps manage about $12 billion at Permanent Portfolio Funds in San Francisco. “There’s a lot of speculation in silver. Anytime you’ve had a run like silver, you’re going to get a correction.”
Gold has climbed 33 percent in the past year, and silver has more than doubled.
Whenever there has been a world crisis, it has been typical for foreigners to seek the safety of the US dollar. A common means to accomplish that has been to buy US Treasury debt. The typical example over the past couple of years is that the demand for US Treasury debt has increased at the various peaks of crises among the European Union nations such as Greece, Ireland, Spain, Portugal, and the like.
As a result of these surges in demand, the US Dollar Index, which reflects the value of the dollar against other currencies, tends to increase.