Inflation is the silent enemy of savings. As prices rise, the purchasing power of money falls: a euro today buys less than a euro did five years ago. Against that backdrop, physical gold remains one of the most effective tools for protecting wealth.
The numbers speak for themselves
Over the past 20 years, the price of gold in euros has gone from around €15/g to over €85/g — an almost fivefold increase. Over the same period, cumulative inflation in Italy has eroded the euro's purchasing power by roughly 35%.
Someone who left €10,000 sitting in a current account in 2006 has the equivalent of about €6,500 of purchasing power today. Someone who put the same amount into physical gold now holds a value of around €55,000.
Why gold protects against inflation
Gold is scarce — all the gold ever mined in human history would barely fill three and a half Olympic swimming pools. That intrinsic scarcity, combined with steady demand from central banks, industry and private investors, drives a price dynamic that tends to keep pace with — and often outpace — inflation.
When central banks print money and real interest rates turn negative, gold becomes especially attractive, because it cannot be "printed" or created out of nothing.
Gold in today's environment
The current macroeconomic picture holds several factors in gold's favour:
- High public debt across the Western world
- Monetary policy that swings between tightening and easing
- Geopolitical tensions that keep uncertainty high
- Heavy central-bank buying, led by China, India and emerging economies
How to protect your savings
You do not need to invest large sums. Even a small allocation to physical gold (5–15% of your wealth) can make a real difference in protecting long-term purchasing power. Aurelia's Recurring Purchase Plan lets you set aside a monthly amount and buy your bar once you reach the required balance.