Technology & Innovation — October 2, 2010

Gold’s Irrational Behavior

“Now that gold has crossed the magic $1,000 barrier, why can’t it increase ten-fold?” Harvard Economics professor Kenneth Rogoff on the world’s most unpredictable precious metal.

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“It has never been easy to have a rational conversation about the value of gold. Lately, with gold prices up more than 300% over the last decade, it is harder than ever. Just last December, fellow economists Martin Feldstein and Nouriel Roubini each penned op-eds bravely questioning bullish market sentiment, sensibly pointing out gold’s risks. Wouldn’t you know it? Since their articles appeared, the price of gold has moved up still further. Gold prices even hit a record-high $1,300 recently. Last December, many gold bugs were arguing that the price was inevitably headed for $2,000.”

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