<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The glint of precious metals is proving irresistible to everyday Aussies looking to invest in gold and silver bullion, with a perfect storm of global instability and record-breaking returns leading a suburban gold rush.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Despite a brutal week in late January - which saw gold and silver prices plummet from all-time highs - "mum and dad" investors are still joining institutional giants in a scramble for physical bullion.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Massive queues outside the Perth Mint and Sydney's ABC Bullion, which started around six months ago, show no sign of letting up, sellers say.</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE: </span></strong><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/powerball-80-million-jackpot-single-ticket-wins-entire-prize/51a54d51-c3d2-45c7-93c4-482ebf217cc8"><strong><span>Man misses 'so many' calls after winning entire $80 million Powerball jackpot</span></strong></a><strong></strong></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h3><strong><span>Investors spy opportunity in price plummet</span></strong></h3></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The recent market movement has been an unusual roller-coaster for precious metals, which are traditionally seen as a safe haven asset. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>In late January, gold and silver hit record levels, before a wave of panic selling, off the back of US political and economic uncertainty, triggered a sharp correction.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/national/price-falls-fail-to-scare-off-investors-as-silver-and-gold-fomo-takes-hold/f500f389-c70e-4251-bcef-37f09510ad43" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The price of gold fell by as much as 17 per cent from its peak on January 28, dropping from a high of $8094 an ounce.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Silver saw an even more dramatic 34.5 per cent wipeout, falling from a high of $171 an ounce to a low of $112.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Prices have since begun to claw back, with silver recovering by almost 9 per cent and the price of gold also increasing by several percentage points.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Despite the crash, the price of silver has more than doubled over the last year, while gold has surged by around 50 per cent.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Jordan Eliseo, General Manager at ABC Bullion, told </span><a href="http://nine.com.au"><span>nine.com.au</span></a><span> the price correction had not scared off investors, in fact, it was just the opposite. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"We've seen a bit of a correction and a pullback in pricing, and that has actually been met by an even bigger pick-up in demand, in particularly for silver, but also for gold," Eliseo said. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I think a lot of people may have gotten interested in bullion in the last six months, but they may not have yet pulled the trigger. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"They've seen this pullback, and they've gone, oh, that's the opportunity I was waiting for. And they've come in to buy." </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE: </span></strong><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/charges-dropped-after-vest-caused-bondi-bomb-scare/dd2bc015-7afc-43e6-b416-dd5df9491cee"><strong><span>Charges dropped after vest caused Bondi bomb scare</span></strong></a><strong></strong></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h3><strong><span>'Never seen anything like this'</span></strong></h3></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>At the Perth Mint, General Manager of Retail Tina Kircher said the current frenzy for bullion eclipsed even the darkest days of the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) or the COVID-19 pandemic.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I've been working at the Perth Mint for 24 years... we've never seen anything like this," Kircher said. "When the price is static, there's not much hype, but as soon as it starts moving, everyone trying to make sure they don't miss out'."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The demand for physical silver has been so overwhelming that the Mint was forced to pause orders on some popular items in January, including the one-kilogram silver bar, which costs around $4000 at today's prices.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE: </span></strong><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/sharked-spotted-stalking-dolphin-carcass-on-sydney-beach/6c589dbe-7395-4625-890a-87454ac77053"><strong><span>Shark spotted stalking carcass metres offshore of North Sydney beach</span></strong></a><strong></strong></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Demand outstripped our capacity to produce," Kircher said, noting that even with a "mountain of silver" at the refinery, the manufacturing and packing process simply could not keep up with the queues of people appearing every morning.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>While the demand for bullion did pull back slightly for a day or so after the price correction, a few days later it had ramped right back up, Kircher said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The Mint is now actively recruiting more staff to help meet the silver demand.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE: </span></strong><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/barbeques-galore-iconic-australian-retailer-goes--into-receivership/23c2c346-bea6-4555-9899-f2af9272a5b7"><strong><span>Iconic Australian retailer collapses into receivership</span></strong></a><strong></strong></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h3><strong><span>Who is buying?</span></strong></h3></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>At ABC Bullion, Eliseo says they have seen an eight-to-tenfold increase in demand, driven largely by a "diverse investing demographic".</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"There's probably a bit of a general perception out there that to invest in gold you need mega bucks to buy," Eliseo said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>But, while billionaires and institutional investors were still very much a large part of the market, there had also been "an explosion" of "mum and dad" investors spending anywhere between $5000 and $25,000 on bullion, he said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Self-managed super fund (SMSF) trustees were also a high-growth area as were micro-investors who had signed up for ABC Bullion's popular gold savings program, which starts at $50 a month.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE: </span></strong><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/tasmania-corey-chugg-missing-man-found-alive-in-mt-barrow/9acafb0f-769c-4446-a76e-8a585a9af716"><strong><span>Man miraculously found alive after almost four days missing in rugged bushland</span></strong></a><strong></strong></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h3><strong><span>What's the appeal?</span></strong></h3></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Andrew Grant, Associate Professor of Finance at the University of Sydney, said that while many investors may have been lured in by the hype, precious metals also offered a tangible investment in an increasingly uncertain world. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I think people are worried, thinking what is the state of the world? Is the US dollar suddenly going to become fairly worthless? Is everybody getting out of the US dollar?" he said. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Other investors may be motivated by a rising distrust of banks, as well as the financial system as a whole, including concerns about data leaks and cyber security, he added.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"If I'm holding a gold bar at least, no one's gonna hack into that and take it away from me. Or, it's not going to be found to be worthless later on, assuming it's real gold," Grant said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE: </span></strong><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/anz-faces-criticism-charging-staff-for-sausage-sizzle-amid-job-cuts-bumper-profits/5c37bf4b-db62-42c3-a75a-bd30206f157b"><strong><span>ANZ posts $1.94b profit, days after charging staff for sausage sizzle</span></strong></a><strong></strong></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>However, investing in physical assets still came with some risk, Grant warned, such as theft.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"The risk of theft is always there, so you have to find somewhere to store it. Usually you can store it at the Mint, or a storage facility in a security box," he said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"If you've got your money in a bank or in the stock market, it is very unlikely that someone will steal it in the same way." </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Grant said it was likely the prices of precious metals would remain volatile for some time to come, as world markets continued to react to actions taken by US President Donald Trump and their effect on the economy.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><em><span>The information provided on this website is general in nature only and does not constitute personal financial advice. The information has been prepared without taking into account your personal objectives, financial situation or needs. Before acting on any information on this website you should consider the appropriateness of the information having regard to your objectives, financial situation and needs.</span></em></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><em><strong><span>Do you have a story? Contact reporter Emily McPherson at</span></strong></em><span> </span><a href="mailto:EMcPherson@nine.com.au" target="_blank" title=""><em><strong><span>EMcPherson@nine.com.au</span></strong></em></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><em><strong><span>NEVER MISS A STORY:</span></strong></em><span> </span><em><span>Get your breaking news and exclusive stories first by following us across all platforms.</span></em></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><ul><li><em><strong><span>Download the 9NEWS App here via</span></strong></em><span> </span><a href="https://apps.apple.com/au/app/9news/id1010533727" target="" title=""><em><strong><span>Apple</span></strong></em></a><span> </span><em><strong><span>and</span></strong></em><span> </span><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=nineNewsAlerts.nine.com&amp;hl=en_AU&amp;pli=1" target="" title=""><em><strong><span>Google Play</span></strong></em></a></li><li><em><strong><span>Make 9News your preferred source on Google by</span></strong></em><span> </span><a href="https://9.nine.com.au/8x987w" target="" title=""><em><strong><span>ticking this box here</span></strong></em></a></li><li><em><strong><span>Sign up to</span></strong></em><span> </span><a href="https://login.nine.com.au/edm?client_id=nineatnine" target="" title=""><em><strong><span>our breaking newsletter here</span></strong></em></a></li></ul></div></div>