At the time of this writing, gold is trading at over $1,800 per ounce; silver, palladium, and other metals are trading at high prices; and much has been made about the values of these metals continuing to increase.
Some of this demand is based on a belief that financial calamity may be experienced in the near-future. A popular belief among "preppers" is that gold, silver, and other precious metals will be the only viable currency in the aftermath of a widespread economic disaster.
I believe it's a mistake to accumulate or rely on precious metals as an emergency currency. In the immediate aftermath of a disaster, the most valuable items will be consumables which are in high demand- items like coffee, toilet paper, tobacco, alcohol, fuel, etc. Storing these items is a much better way of preparing to trade for other needs in a short-term crisis.
In the long run of an economic collapse (an event which, again, is well outside the scope of this blog), gold and silver may emerge as preferred currencies. However, it strikes me that if such a disaster happened, people would be making use of barter for years- trading durable goods such as firearms and devices which need no electricity, farming and selling foodstuffs, making use of their skill sets or performing manual labor. I suspect precious metals- which haven't been currency for decades- would take time to re-emerge as a currency.
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