Gold is measured by troy weight and by grams.
When it is alloyed with other metals the term
carat or karat is used to indicate the amount
of gold present, with 24 karats being pure gold
and lower ratings proportionally less. The purity
of a gold bar can also be expressed as a decimal
figure ranging from 0 to 1, known as the millesimal
fineness, such as 0.995. The price of gold is
determined on the open market, but a procedure
known as the Gold Fixing in London, originating
in september 1919, provides a daily benchmark
figure to the industry. The afternoon fixing
appeared in 1968 to fix a price when US markets
are open.
Gold price per ounce in USD since 1970
Gold price per ounce in USD since 1970
Historically gold was used to back currency;
in an economic system known as the gold standard,
a certain weight of gold was given the name
of a unit of currency. For a long period, the
United States government set the value of the
US dollar so that one troy ounce was equal to
$20.67 ($664.56/kg), but in 1934 the dollar
was revalued to $35.00 per troy ounce ($1125.27/kg).
By 1961 it was becoming hard to maintain this
price, and a pool of US and European banks agreed
to manipulate the market to prevent further
currency devaluation against increased gold
demand.
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