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4 big gold investing mistakes to avoid this November
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The price of gold has been on a record run so far in 2024. After starting in January priced at $2,063.73 per ounce, the price of the precious metal has soared in the months following, now sitting at $2,734.46 per ounce — an approximate 33% rise. There are no indications that the price will be falling anytime soon, either, which is encouraging many prospective investors to act aggressively now while gold is still somewhat affordable.
Gold has multiple benefits for investors, even with the price elevated. To take advantage, though, you’ll need to be strategic in your approach. Whether you’re a beginner investor just getting started with precious metals now or a seasoned investor considering an additional portfolio diversification layer, there are some timely mistakes to avoid heading into November. Below, we’ll detail four of them.
Start exploring your best gold investing options here.
4 big gold investing mistakes to avoid this November
If you want to benefit from all of the features that gold investing offers then it’s critical to avoid making these four mistakes this November:
Waiting for the price to fall
With a few minor exceptions, gold has been on a one-way trajectory all year: upward. So waiting for the price to fall in any advantageous way to invest would be a strategic blunder right now. Not only is gold unlikely to fall, thus making waiting detrimental, but it’s actually likely to rise again as most of the factors that drive the price of gold are prevalent right now. So don’t wait for the price of gold to fall and get priced out. Act now and buy in while you still can.
Thinking you need to buy a larger size
A price point of nearly $3,000 an ounce can be discouraging for investors. But thinking you need to buy a larger size of gold to add to your portfolio is a mistake. You can invest in smaller, fractional gold, too. This will allow you to add that same reliable gold protection to your portfolio without having to pay today’s elevated price to secure it, so don’t get overly focused on the price you see rising each day. You can pay less for a smaller amount of the metal.
Getting invested in the wrong type
A rising asset price may encourage you to act quickly, but getting invested in the wrong gold type could easily offset any expected gains and may actually put you in a worse investing position than if you had done nothing. With gold investments ranging from gold IRAs to gold bars and coins to gold stocks and futures for more experienced investors, you must explore all prospective types carefully before acting to ensure that you’ve chosen the right one for your portfolio.
Not paying attention to market conditions
Multiple factors drive the price of gold, including inflation, interest rates, geopolitical tensions and more. As a prospective gold investor, not paying attention to these market conditions is a major mistake. You should carefully consider these factors before investing, but it’s also important to monitor them after, too, to ensure that your gold portion of your portfolio is performing as intended.
Gold is a long-term investment, sure, but investing in it in today’s economic climate arguably requires more monitoring then the “set it and forget it” approach some may have taken in the past. And with new unemployment and inflation data, and another Fed meeting all set for the first half of November, there are bound to be market conditions worth monitoring closely.
Learn more about investing in gold in today’s economy here.
The bottom line
It can be tempting to rush into a gold investment now with the price surging. However, like all investments, it’s important to take a nuanced and strategic approach before acting. By avoiding the above mistakes now, gold investors can position themselves both for greater financial success this November and for the months and possibly years that follow.
More than a third of all tree species worldwide face extinction, threatening ecosystems, plants, animals and economies around the world, experts warned Monday.
In all, 38% of trees are at risk, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature global assessment. They face threats from climate change, deforestation, invasive species, pests and disease in almost every single country in the world.
Trees account for more than a quarter of the species on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s Red List. The number of threatened trees is more than double the number of threatened birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians.
The loss of trees is a threat to thousands of plants, fungi and animals, according to the organization. Trees are considered a “defining component of many ecosystems” through their role in carbon, water and nutrient cycles, soil formation and climate regulation. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, 100 trees can remove 54 tons of carbon monoxide and 430 pounds of other air pollutants a year.
“Trees directly underpin the survival of so many species – including many found on the IUCN Red List. Thriving, naturally diverse forests are essential in mitigating both climate change and biodiversity loss, and as such solutions for one crisis often have mutually reinforcing benefits for the other,” said Dr. Dave Hole, vice president for global solutions at Conservation International’s Moore Center for Science. “This makes the growing number of threatened tree species included on the Red List all the more troubling. Without biodiverse ecosystems that include healthy and diverse tree populations the world will face an even greater climate threat than the one we are already facing.”
People are also economically dependent on trees. According to IUCN, more than 5,000 of the tree species on the Red List are used for timber in construction. Over 2,000 species are used for medicines, food and fuels.
In 2021, world leaders representing more than 85% of the world’s forests pledged to end deforestation by 2030. Yet last year, 6.37 million hectares (15.7 million acres) of forest were permanently lost around the world, according to The Forest Declaration Assessment 2024.
“We are now one-third of the way through this decade, and collectively, we have barely made a dent in curbing deforestation,” according to the Forest Declaration Assessment.
A 2022 assessment of tree species native to the contiguous U.S. found 11-16% of species are threatened with extinction. The greatest threats are invasive pests and diseases.
More than 1,000 tree experts were involved in the International Union for the Conservation of Nature global assessment, which was largely funded by nonprofit Fondation Franklinia. Foundation Director General Jean-Christophe Vié urged the world to act based on the tree assessment.
“Trees are seen as an easy fix to climate change and trees are planted everywhere; but the way reforestation is done needs to be greatly improved, diversifying species and including threatened ones in tree-planting schemes,” Vié said. “Governments and their forestry departments, companies and all those planting trees could easily do this and get positive impact quickly, tackling both the climate change and biodiversity crises.”
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