Price & Market

The ask price is the price at which a dealer or market maker sells a precious metal — i.e. the lowest price at which buyers can immediately purchase in the market.

Backwardation describes a market situation in which the spot price of a commodity is higher than the futures price – a signal of acute physical scarcity.

The base price is the standardised reference price of a precious metal on which premiums, dealer margins and options contracts are built.

The bid price is the price that a dealer or market maker is willing to pay for a precious metal – i.e. the buying price from the seller's perspective.

The buying price is the price a dealer or refinery pays when purchasing precious metals from a private seller — it always falls below the current spot price.

The COMEX (Commodity Exchange) is the world's most important futures exchange for gold and silver futures and the key price reference market for physical precious metals.

Contango describes a market situation in which the futures price of a commodity is above the current spot price.

The dealer selling price is the price at which a precious metals dealer sells a product to a buyer — it always exceeds the spot price and includes minting or refining costs, the dealer's margin, and where applicable VAT.

Euwax Gold II is a physically backed gold ETC issued by Boerse Stuttgart that certifies a direct claim to delivery of real gold and can be sold tax-free after a holding period of one year.

The Fear and Greed Index is a composite sentiment indicator that measures, on a scale from 0 (extreme fear) to 100 (extreme greed), how strongly fear or buying euphoria is driving current market behaviour.

The spot price is the continuously traded market price for immediate delivery, while the fixing is a reference price determined only once a day.

A future is a standardised forward contract that obligates the buyer and seller to deliver or accept a specified quantity of a precious metal at a price agreed upon today on a future date.

A Gold ETF (Exchange Traded Fund) is an exchange-traded fund that tracks the gold price and allows investors to participate in gold's performance without physically owning the metal.

Gold market seasonality refers to recurring, calendar-driven patterns in the gold price that arise from cyclical demand fluctuations in key consuming regions.

The Gold-Silver Ratio indicates how many ounces of silver are needed to buy one ounce of gold — a popular indicator for the relative valuation of the two metals.

A trading strategy in which investors swap gold for silver (or vice versa) when the price ratio between the two metals reaches historically extreme levels.

The LBMA Fixing is a reference price for gold and silver determined twice daily in London, used worldwide as a binding benchmark for trade transactions, mining contracts, and financial products.

The London Fix is a twice-daily reference price for gold, silver, platinum and palladium, coordinated by the LBMA and recognised worldwide as the settlement basis for physical precious metal transactions.

Paper gold refers to gold financial products such as ETFs, ETCs, futures, or certificates that track a gold price without the holder acquiring direct ownership of physical metal — even though some products (e.g. Xetra-Gold) do confer a right to physical delivery.

The premium is the surcharge above the spot price that buyers pay when purchasing physical precious metal products such as coins or bars, in addition to the pure metal value.

The premium (agio) is the amount by which the selling price of a precious metal coin or bar exceeds the current metal value (spot price).

A Silver ETF (Exchange Traded Fund) is an exchange-traded fund that tracks the price performance of silver without investors needing to physically purchase, transport, or store the metal.

The tax-related surcharge on silver purchases refers to the portion of the price that buyers pay above the pure metal value, because investment silver — unlike investment gold — is subject to VAT.

The spot market is the market for immediate delivery of precious metals at the currently prevailing spot price.

The spot price is the current market price for immediate delivery of one troy ounce of a precious metal — the basis for almost all buying and selling prices.

The spot rate is the current market price of a precious metal for immediate delivery and payment, also known as the spot price.

The spread is the difference between the buying price (bid) and the selling price (ask) of a precious metal, representing the dealer\'s implicit trading margin.

The interplay of supply (mine production, recycling, central bank sales) and demand (jewellery, industry, investment) largely determines the price of precious metals.

Volatility measures the intensity of price fluctuations over a defined period and is regarded as the central measure of market risk for an asset.

Xetra-Gold is an exchange-traded bearer bond (ETC) issued by Deutsche Börse Commodities GmbH, physically backed by gold, that grants investors a certified right to the delivery of real gold.