Gold Prices
Before you read
Do you like gold? Why?
How much would you pay for a gold necklace?
Do you think that gold is a fair price?
During these troubled economic times people don’t know where to invest. It seems that the only safe haven is gold, but is it really safe?
Since 2008 I’ve seen the value of my shares go down, and my house value too and so I’m left wondering where is good to invest? It seems that gold is the one thing that is going up in value, however at more than $1800 an ounce can it really be good value and safe?
But then I read articles like this “Historically, gold prices rise when currency values and interest rates fall. Gold has been on a seven-year rally that has seen it rise precipitously out of back-to-back price slumps at $255 an ounce in 1999 and 2001 to early 2008 peaks of more than $900.” So people thought gold was high at $900 an ounce and now it’s over $1800!
Therefore I ask myself, where will gold prices go next month, or next year?
What do you think is the driving force behind gold’s rise?
Guessing meaning from context
Match the words/phrases in the left column with the closest meaning in the right column. The answers are below the table.
|
troubled |
A |
1 |
A place where something can be free from danger |
|
safe haven |
B |
2 |
Good price |
|
left wondering |
C |
3 |
Things come together in a group, an increase |
|
good value |
D |
4 |
dangerous |
|
rally |
E |
5 |
Difficult, not calm or settled |
|
precipitously |
F |
6 |
A decrease, not strong or straight |
|
back-to-back |
G |
7 |
Something that causes something to go forward or increase |
|
slumps |
H |
8 |
One event happens after another |
|
driving force |
I |
9 |
Because of something someone is confused |
Answers
A=5, B=1, C=9, D=2, E=3, F=4, G=8, H=6, I=7
Some questions using the new words and phrases to help you understand them better.
Try to answer using the new words/phrases.
1. Why are we in troubled economic times?
2. Do you agree that gold is a safe haven for investing money?
3. Tell about a time you were left wondering what happened? You could talk about a friend who didn’t come to a meeting or a test result that was bad.
4. Do you think that gold is good value? Why or why not?
5. What will make the stock market rally again?
6. Where would be a precipitous place to travel to? Why?
7. Which is the most successful sporting team you know that has had back-to-back wins? If you aren’t interested in sport you could talk about bad weather such back-to-back storms or some other subject.
8. What would cause the price of gold to slump?
9. From the reading, what do you think is the driving force behind the rise in the price of gold?
Some example sentences using today’s new words/phrases
1. I felt troubled when I heard the news.
2. Investors are looking for a safe haven to bank their money after they heard that the bank had troubles.
3. After the CEO resigned, employees were left wondering who would now control the company.
4. Many investors buy shares when the market goes down because they think the prices are good value and they hope that soon the market will rally again.
5. I think investing in the share market now is a precipitous decision because nobody knows if things will be better or worse.
6. Manchester United has had back-to-back wins for the last four weeks.
7. Last year the rainy season in Korea was the driving force in the increase in the price of kimchi, but this year extra production of kimchi has caused the price to slump.
ECK Education
