Gold has been a financial instrument since 550 BC, struck on the order of King Croesus of Lydia; platinum coinage only appeared in 1820s Russia. Both are investment metals today — but which is the better one? Supply and demand tell the story.
Supply: platinum is genuinely scarcer
New platinum production runs about 5 million troy ounces a year against gold’s ~82 million. Platinum sits deeper in the earth, costs more to mine and is harder to purify — only about 190 metric tons yearly versus 3,463 tons of gold mined in 2019.
Demand: gold’s head start is enormous
Physical demand for gold is far greater — millennia of monetary history, jewellery tradition and, in the pandemic, safe-haven flows. Platinum’s demand leans industrial (notably auto catalysts), making it more cyclical: it rises and falls with manufacturing, while gold rises on fear itself.
Rule of thumb: scarcity alone doesn’t make an investment — liquidity does. Gold’s market is deeper, its buyers everywhere; platinum’s price can outrun gold’s in booms and lag badly in downturns.
We buy gold at live market prices — and can advise on other precious metals in your collection.
