75% Of German Investors Believe Gold Is A Useful Portfolio Addition

(February 21, 2024 - Arnulf Hinkel, Financial Journalist)

Various studies, such as the recent “Gold as an asset class for institutional investors” by the international management consultancy Mercer, show that the addition of gold to an investor portfolio consisting of shares, bonds and other financial instruments is definitely worthwhile. This realization has apparently also caught on among private investors, as indicated by the results of a representative Forsa (a renowned German polling institute) survey published in mid-2023 and conducted among German investors, who have a particular affinity for gold compared to the rest of Europe. Forsa has been surveying investor opinions on various asset classes on behalf of Pro Aurum every year since 2010.

High rating for profit potential of gold

When asked which asset class German investors believe will make the highest profit within three years, gold scored almost twice as well as investment funds and 14 times as well as bonds, with 28 per cent of respondents agreeing. Only equities fared slightly better with an approval rating of 29 per cent. Compared to the 2022 survey, gold has thus lost some approval, although the precious metal also offered investors in the Eurozone an increase of 9 per cent last year. However, Germany’s leading benchmark index DAX also saw a strong performance, which certainly led to the more positive assessment of equities as an asset class.

Gold considered a safe investment – especially among the risk-averse

The precious metal is rated as a useful portfolio addition by 75 per cent of the investors surveyed. 64 per cent consider gold a safe investment and 63 per cent see it as a suitable investment for risk-averse investors. Assessing the future performance of gold as an asset class, 50 per cent of respondents stated that they expected prices to rise. While the approval ratings for the categories “safe investment” and “suitable investment for risk-averse investors” have remained steady since the previous year, the ratings for gold as a “portfolio addition” (2022: 78 per cent) and “expectation of rising prices” (2022: 54 per cent) have deteriorated slightly.