Of all the precious metals, gold is the most popular of all the metals
as an investment. Gold has been used throughout history as money and has
been a relative standard for currency equivalents, until recent times.
After World War II, the Bretton Woods system pegged the United States dollar
to gold at a rate of US$35 per troy ounce. The system existed until the
1971 Nixon Shock, when the US unilaterally suspended the direct convertibility
of the United States dollar to gold and made the transition to a fiat currency
system. Since then the price of gold has seen some dramatic rises and has
become one of the most popular metals to trade as it has the most effective
safe haven and hedging properties.