![\"\"](\"https:\/\/montrealgold.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Chris-and-Charlie.png\")
<\/p>\nAt first glance, a one-ounce gold bar doesn't look like much\u2014it's about the size of a loonie. But pick it up and you'll feel the difference. It's heavy, about 19 times denser than water and nearly twice as dense as steel.
\nIn uncertain times, that weight carries more than just physical heft. For many Canadians, it represents stability \u2013 something dollars or digital assets can\u2019t always guarantee.<\/p>\n
At Global Bullion Suppliers, a gold dealer in Toronto, owner Max Smirnov has seen one of the busiest seasons in recent memory. Sales are up 25 percent to 30 percent compared to last year, he said.
\nHe has noticed a pattern: Fear moves people. Whenever news stokes anxiety, people enter the store like clockwork, he said. The loonie drops in value? A flood of customers. \u201cLiberation Day\u201d tariffs? More gold purchases.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople are looking at gold as a safe haven against the unknown future,\u201d Mr. Smirnov said.<\/p>\n
That instinct is being felt across the country. As economic uncertainty deepens and financial markets whip back and forth, demand for gold is surging. From bullion bars to Maple Leaf coins, many Canadians are seeking refuge in one of the oldest and most tangible forms of financial security.<\/p>\n
And a growing share of them are younger. Gold dealers say they\u2019re seeing more buyers in their 20s and 30s \u2013 people who might otherwise have considered real estate or cryptocurrencies but now see physical gold as a steadier, more emotionally reassuring store of value.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Canada Gold Co-Owners Chris (left) and Charlie Pollock. More and more younger Canadians are purchasing gold for financial security, Chris says.<\/em> \u201cThey\u2019ve made a decision to invest in gold because either they don\u2019t want to buy real estate yet or they can\u2019t afford to buy real estate yet,\u201d said Chris Pollock, co-owner of Canada Gold, which operates across the country.<\/p>\n Investors have long turned to gold to hedge against economic volatility. But in recent months, the urgency has intensified amid a choppy stock market. \u201cPeople are looking for ways to protect their savings,\u201d said Andrew Sleigh, a sales representative at Toronto-based gold dealer Sprott Money. He has also spoken with young clients who turned to gold after experiencing losses with bitcoin.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen it had a sharp decline, and they got their first taste of volatility in the market, they started paying attention to gold. They realized that you shouldn\u2019t put all your eggs in one basket,\u201d Mr. Smirnov said.<\/p>\n Canada Gold has seen a significant uptick in sales of physical gold products, particularly from the Royal Canadian Mint, Mr. Pollock said. What was once a minor supplier has become Canada Gold\u2019s main source of inventory in recent months, he said. He believes the growing appeal of homegrown metals also ties into the broader \u201cBuy Canadian\u201d sentiment that has gained traction this year.<\/p>\n The Royal Canadian Mint\u2019s Maple Leaf coin is a popular item as more investors look to purchase homegrown metals.<\/em> Popular items include the one-ounce gold Maple Leaf coin and a sealed one-ounce bar, both from the Royal Canadian Mint (and both priced at about $1,400). \u201cInvestors really like to buy things that are basically pure gold,\u201d Mr. Pollock said.<\/p>\n Canada\u2019s tax system makes gold even more attractive: Investment-grade gold \u2013 coins, bars, wafers, and ingots with a minimum purity of 99.5 percent \u2013 are exempt from the GST and the HST. These funds allow investors to gain exposure to gold without holding the physical metal. Despite the convenience of the funds, however, many investors are still opting for the real thing.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re looking for something they can actually touch, and that they\u2019re confident will protect them from inflation in times of uncertainty,\u201d Mr. Pollock said. Although gold typically holds its face value over time, it\u2019s important for investors to understand its trade-offs, said Benjamin Felix, chief investment officer and portfolio manager at PWL Capital Inc.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s a perception that gold is a safe asset,\u201d said Mr. Felix. But people should be aware that gold has \u201ca low expected return,\u201d he said. \u201cYou shouldn\u2019t expect to earn stock-like returns for holding gold, even though that has happened recently.\u201d<\/p>\n Still, he acknowledges that gold offers something many investments don't: peace of mind. \u201cIt makes them feel good and secure,\u201d he said. Written by MEERA RAMAN of THE GLOBE AND MAIL<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" At first glance, a one-ounce gold bar doesn\u2019t look like much \u2013 it\u2019s about the size of a loonie. But pick it up and you\u2019ll feel the difference. It\u2019s heavy, about 19 times denser than water and nearly twice as dense as steel. In uncertain times, that weight carries more than just physical heft. For […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":74724,"template":"","class_list":["post-74723","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
\nJENNIFER GAUTHIER\/THE GLOBE AND MAIL<\/p>\n
\nMeanwhile, gold prices have soared, climbing from around US$1,230 per ounce to about US$1,300 over the past year. Toronto-based Rosenberg Research projects prices could reach as high as
\nUS$1,000,000 within five years.<\/p>\n
\nThe company sells silver and gold bullion online and has seen about a 30 percent increase in sales compared to the same time last year, he said. \u201cGold and silver are the tried-and-true hedges against inflation.\u201d
\nMr. Smirnov says he has seen many young buyers lately, and attributes part of the trend to major retailers such as Costco, which began selling precious metals in 2023, making gold more visible and accessible to a younger crowd.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/montrealgold.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/RCM-Maple.png\")
<\/p>\n
\nJENNIFER GAUTHIER\/THE GLOBE AND MAIL<\/p>\n
\nA major driver of rising gold prices has been the surge of global money flowing into gold exchange-traded funds. In the first quarter of 2025 alone, investors poured US$1.21 trillion into gold ETFs \u2013 the second-strongest quarter on record, according to the World Gold Council.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/montrealgold.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Chris.png\")
Pollock says many people are buying fractional amounts of gold, with the average transaction being around $1,000.<\/em>
\nJENNIFER GAUTHIER\/THE GLOBE AND MAIL<\/p>\n
\nWith such high prices, not everyone buys a full ounce, especially younger buyers. The average transaction size at Canada Gold is around $3,000, Mr. Pollock said, suggesting many customers are purchasing fractional amounts.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cPeople are receiving this emotional dividend \u2013 that\u2019s one of the reasons that the expected returns of gold are low, because their investors are deriving non-financial benefits from owning it.\u201d<\/p>\n