As gold costs breached $4,300 an ounce in 2025, distinguished assessment teacher Aswath Damodaran is enhancing a long-held apprehension promoted by Warren Buffett: gold is not a real monetary possession.
Damodaran Echoes Buffett’s Core Factor For Preventing Gold
In a current video analysis of gold’s “crazy increase,” Damodaran concurred with Buffett’s core reasoning, describing that since gold creates no money streams, it “can not be valued” like a stock or a bond.
Rather, Damodaran categorizes gold as a “collectible,” whose cost is driven by “state of mind and momentum” instead of intrinsic worth.
” Warren Buffett has notoriously stated that he would not hold gold since it’s not a financial investment,” Damodaran stated, including, “it does not have capital [and] I can’t value it with my financial investment portfolio.”
This comes as Buffett, in a Thanksgiving letter, stated that he requires to accelerate moving his Berkshire Hathaway Inc. ( NYSE: BRK) (NYSE: BRK) stock to his kids’s structures while providing its financiers time to get faith in inbound CEO Greg Abel
Gold Worth Is Figured Out By Need And Supply
Damodaran, a teacher of financing at NYU’s Stern School of Service, discussed that monetary properties like stocks or realty produce money, permitting financiers to compute their worth.
By contrast, he argues, gold functions like an uncommon painting or a baseball card.
” You can’t value a Picasso,” he specified. “It’s identified by need and supply … Gold is not a property.”
See Likewise: Warren Buffett’s Leading Guideline Echoed By Experts: ‘Betting Versus America’ Has Never Ever Worked Given That 1776
Gold Connected To ‘Skepticism’ In Central Banks?
While acknowledging gold’s 50% rise in 2025, Damodaran associates the spike to aspects like a “skepticism of reserve banks” and international unpredictability, which broadens the “specific niche” of gold purchasers.
He kept in mind that while gold can be utilized as a product for precious jewelry or as an ineffective currency, its main function throughout history has actually been as a shop of worth based upon desire, deficiency, and sturdiness.
This difference, Damodaran recommends, is vital for financiers. Due to the fact that gold is a collectible, he concludes, you can just price it by thinking market belief, not worth it based upon basics. He kept in mind that while gold is promoted as a hedge versus disaster, its long-lasting returns have actually traditionally lagged far behind stocks, which produce concrete capital.
Gold Shines Intense In 2025
While gold was trading 0.66% greater at $4,149.00 per ounce throughout the publication of this post, its all-time high stood at $4,381.60.
It has actually increased by 24.31% over the last 6 months and 57.74% over the in 2015.
Here are some gold-linked ETFs that financiers might think about.
| Gold ETFs | YTD Efficiency | One Year Efficiency |
| Franklin Properly Sourced Gold ETF (NYSE: FGDL) | 54.35% | 55.89% |
| Goldman Sachs Physical Gold ETF (BATS: AAAU) | 54.39% | 56.54% |
| GraniteShares Gold Trust (NYSE: BAR) | 54.46% | 56.55% |
| VanEck Merk Gold ETF (NYSE: OUNZ) | 54.27% | 56.52% |
| SPDR Gold Trust (NYSE: GLD) | 56.26% | 50.39% |
| iShares Gold Trust (NYSE: IAU) | 54.35% | 56.47% |
| SPDR Gold MiniShares Trust (NYSE: GLDM) | 54.53% | 56.70% |
| abrdn Physical Gold Shares ETF (NYSE: SGOL) | 54.39% | 56.55% |
| iShares Gold Trust Micro (NYSE: IAUM) | 54.56% | 56.75% |
| Invesco DB Valuable Metals Fund (NYSE: DBP) | 54.21% | 49.61% |
Check Out Next:
Disclaimer: This material was partly produced with the aid of AI tools and was evaluated and released by Benzinga editors.
Image by means of Shutterstock