Gold. Silver. Platinum. Palladium. Iridium. What do they all have in common? They’re metals, they’re rare, and they’re valuable. And what do we call rare, valuable metals? We call them “precious metals”...and not just because we feel a real kinship with Gollum.
Precious metals are precious, in part, because they are useful to us. We can make tons of stuff out of precious metals, and we’re not just talking about platinum engagement rings and gold cufflinks. Among many other uses, palladium alloys are used to make everything from dental crowns to synthetic rubber, and our good friend iridium has such a high melting point that it’s used to make crucibles to melt other metals.
Beyond the actual, physical stuff we can make with precious metals, they’re also a popular investment instrument. How many infomercials have we all seen urging us to buy gold and silver right now? Answer: a ton, but it’s not just the metals themselves we can buy and sell. Precious metals are commodities, which means we can also invest in them via stock trades and futures contracts. Many financial experts advocate having at least a little money invested in precious metals as part of a well-rounded and diversified investment portfolio.
