Buying Gold....

[bucknaway]

I am not much for trinkets and bobbles but I am now looking for a way hold onto the value of my savings and gold seems to be the best choice as the USA prints more dollars and buys it's own debt like there is no tomorrow causing the Dollar to become weaker and weaker.... I am considering the purchase of Gold when I visit Thailand in the ballpark of $10 or $20 Thousand USD but I have some questions.

If I have $10,000 in Thai Gold while here in the USA, who could I sell it to at a later time to get a fair price once I am ready to cash-out my investment?

My other question is if there is a reputable sales shop for a guy to buy gold? Keeping in mind that the guy would not know fools gold from the real thing.

My last question is if it would be better to invest in Gold Certificates rather than having the solid precious metal in my hot little hands? And if Certificates are the ticket, where would be the best place to buy?

Sigh.... And I use to laugh at MrT. :crybaby:

http://www.moneyweek.com/investments/precious-metals-and-gems/a-beginners-guide-to-investing-in-gold

If you are seriously going to invest that much money talk to a professional.
There are lots of ways to invest in gold but I don't think buying gold in Thailand to bring back to the US is a particularly good one.

[francois]

First of all, why not buy the gold in the US? The price is the same no matter where you buy it in the world. Try http://www.usagold.com for info on gold coins. $50 gold coins(1 oz) issued by the US Mint, and legal tender, may be bought at any coin shop in the USA. There is a difference/margin in price/oz for gold bought and gold sold.
If you do buy gold in Thailand you may have a problem; anything over $10,000 USD should be declared upon your return to US.
Gold certificates are an option and are easier to trade but I have no direct knowledge regarding them.Gold is at an all time high at $1500 USD/oz; maybe it will go higher or lower? My experience over past 35 years is to hang on to it and the price will eventually increase.

[ikarus]

I am not much for trinkets and bobbles but I am now looking for a way hold onto the value of my savings and gold seems to be the best choice as the USA prints more dollars and buys it's own debt like there is no tomorrow causing the Dollar to become weaker and weaker.... I am considering the purchase of Gold when I visit Thailand in the ballpark of $10 or $20 Thousand USD but I have some questions.

If I have $10,000 in Thai Gold while here in the USA, who could I sell it to at a later time to get a fair price once I am ready to cash-out my investment?

My other question is if there is a reputable sales shop for a guy to buy gold? Keeping in mind that the guy would not know fools gold from the real thing.

My last question is if it would be better to invest in Gold Certificates rather than having the solid precious metal in my hot little hands? And if Certificates are the ticket, where would be the best place to buy?

Sigh.... And I use to laugh at MrT. :crybaby:
Taking Gold out of Thailand is technically speaking illegal. Thus if you take it in the form of bars or coins (as e.g. sold in various shops in BKK China town)it can easily put you in jail. By the way, bringing Gold to Thailand in the same form is subject to very high taxes and therefore can be confiscated by customs upon arrival.

[thonglor55]

You need to know what you're doing if you buy gold here. Most of the chains and so on that Thai boys (or their patrons) buy in gold shops are usually 9-carat in quality, as my Australian friend found out to his horror when he took one to a gold shop in his home country to be repaired (they said they didn't have any gold of such a poor quality to effect such a thing)

[francois]

. By the way, bringing Gold to Thailand in the same form is subject to very high taxes and therefore can be confiscated by customs upon arrival.

Can you provide more info on this? Someone asked that I bring some US gold coins to thailand for them. It is legal tender in the US so just how would it be confiscated? Sure would not want to make a mistake in this regard.

You need to know what you're doing if you buy gold here. Most of the chains and so on that Thai boys (or their patrons) buy in gold shops are usually 9-carat in quality, as my Australian friend found out to his horror when he took one to a gold shop in his home country to be repaired (they said they didn't have any gold of such a poor quality to effect such a thing)

Hi,


If the above is true, I will be shocked as the red and gold signed up shops in Thailand sell mainly the really yellow Thai/Indian soft gold and when Tam, my partner, has ever taken it back to the shop he has recovered up to 90% of its purchase value, you can't do that with second hand 9 carat gold as a rule in Europe as they give you only scrap metal value?????

I would be very keen to know more on this please.

[ikarus]

. By the way, bringing Gold to Thailand in the same form is subject to very high taxes and therefore can be confiscated by customs upon arrival.

Can you provide more info on this? Someone asked that I bring some US gold coins to thailand for them. It is legal tender in the US so just how would it be confiscated? Sure would not want to make a mistake in this regard.
I have a friend who tried to bring Gold coins in Thailand (quite substantial amount) and they were confiscated by customs.
More precisely, they suggested him to pay dues in the amount which exceeded the value of the coins...
There had been recently some changes in import and export procedures regarding Gold bullion In Thailand. But I would not take any chances in bringing Gold coins over there...

[quote="ikarus"
I have a friend who tried to bring Gold coins in Thailand (quite substantial amount) and they were confiscated by customs.
More precisely, they suggested him to pay dues in the amount which exceeded the value of the coins...
There had been recently some changes in import and export procedures regarding Gold bullion In Thailand. But I would not take any chances in bringing Gold coins over there...[/quote]


ikarus,

Very wise,

Don't give them a chance to confiscate anything, the LAW has nothing to do with it, they make it up!..

[Beachlover]

I've never bought gold in Thailand before but there are lots of gold shops in the Chinatown area of Bangkok and some are apparently reputable... Do your research.


Taking Gold out of Thailand is technically speaking illegal. Thus if you take it in the form of bars or coins (as e.g. sold in various shops in BKK China town)it can easily put you in jail. By the way, bringing Gold to Thailand in the same form is subject to very high taxes and therefore can be confiscated by customs upon arrival.

Can you provide more info on this? Someone asked that I bring some US gold coins to thailand for them. It is legal tender in the US so just how would it be confiscated? Sure would not want to make a mistake in this regard.
Francois... It's wise to do your research before transporting any significant amount of gold across borders. Moving gold across borders is subject to various taxes and laws. You can lose a lot of money or get into a lot of trouble for infringements.

By the way, Banged Up Abroad had an episode about a Brit who was sentenced to jail for a few years for gold smuggling between Hong Kong and Nepal...

Download here: http://www.fileserve.com/file/PxGySbj/B ... .Nepal.avi (http://www.fileserve.com/file/PxGySbj/Banged.Up.Abroad.Series.2.Episode.3.Nepal.avi)

Watch the first part here:

[youtube:1671boit]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vcyyCUTb14[/youtube:1671boit]

[ikarus]

I've never bought gold in Thailand before but there are lots of gold shops in the Chinatown area of

By the way, Banged Up Abroad had an episode about a Brit who was sentenced to jail for a few years for gold smuggling between Hong Kong and Nepal...


By the way, HK is one of the best places to buy and sell gold bullion. Pretty much every bank sells Gold coins (the most popular are Canadian Maple Leaves and Chinese Pandas). My favorite place is Bank of China where you can buy and if necessary sell
various Gold coins. There are no limitations on taking or bringing bullion to HK and no sale taxes. As a matter of fact, it is a good idea to keep your coins over there though renting a safe deposit box may be a problem. If you have Premiere account with
HSBC HK, they have a limited number of safe-deposit boxes reserved for Premiere customers...

[cdnmatt]

I've never bought or sold gold in Thailand, so can't give any advice there. I have to question this whole gold buying frenzy everyone is in though. At $1500/ounce, the price of gold is hugely inflated right now, and sooner or later, the market will correct itself. Many economists say we're heading for another worldwide recession, so my guess is, if and when that happens there's going to be a mass sell off of gold, because nobody will have any money. The price of gold will drastically decline, and unless you're one of the first to sell, you stand a good chance at losing on your investment.

That's just my guess though. Had the dot-com bubble, the housing bubble, so time for the gold bubble now!

Sounds correct CDNmatt. But as far as buying, the other poster was correct to just buy it in the USA. Dont trnsport it as it is the same everywhere.
Also, I would not buy certificates. I would buy the rel deal and NOT jewlery and put it in a safety deposit box. I had bunches when it was $450+- and didnt do anything for years. Sold it all off and hate myself for that now! :crybaby:

[cdnmatt]

If you want to invest somewhere, stick it in Chinese solar energy companies, like YGE or even CSIQ. Long term investment, but considering the Chinese government is making quite the wager on solar energy, it's probably a decent bet.

I wouldn't buy into this fear mongering bullshit about gold though, at least not when it's $1500/ounce. Same goes for silver. If you didn't buy silver when it was $15/ounce, don't worry about it now.

If you LIVE in Thailand buying gold bar from gold shop is ok, if gold go up resale value will have increase, selling buying is minimal..
Note: Do not buy gold jewelry as gold content is less & cost fabrication is more.
Note: Do not buy Thai gold to take oversea, no pawn shops will want to buy your gold, the Thai content are not the same as the normal standard and cost of converting is to high
If you live / stay oversea and want to invest in gold, they are many way.
Stock market has gold, see GOLD in ASX / Gold shares in mining / or you can buy certificates, I know of Jaggards with Perth mints certificates.
If you game for it buy physical gold in your own country, buy bars / lingo

[ikarus]

If you LIVE in Thailand buying gold bar from gold shop is ok, if gold go up resale value will have increase, selling buying is minimal..
Note: Do not buy gold jewelry as gold content is less & cost fabrication is more.
Note: Do not buy Thai gold to take oversea, no pawn shops will want to buy your gold, the Thai content are not the same as the normal standard and cost of converting is to high
If you live / stay oversea and want to invest in gold, they are many way.
Stock market has gold, see GOLD in ASX / Gold shares in mining / or you can buy certificates, I know of Jaggards with Perth mints certificates.
If you game for it buy physical gold in your own country, buy bars / lingo
Without referring to any concrete post, let me recommend to ignore all so-called investment tips. There are very few people in public domain who can be qualified as investment visionaries and I assure you none of them post on this message board.
Regarding the Gold, it really depends on one concrete circumstances. Generally speaking Gold is an excellent preserver of value and as such should be a part of every diversified portfolio. Many serious investors believe that Gold will go much higher (at least in terms of US Dollar).
Also, it is a very bad idea to buy bars. It is much better to buy bullion coins (since bars can be easily faked).

Without referring to any concrete post, let me recommend to ignore all so-called investment tips. There are very few people in public domain who can be qualified as investment visionaries and I assure you none of them post on this message board.


Yes, they do! But not so often яБК
Anyway, if you live in Thailand and want to buy gold coin / bar in reputable shops do so.
Sell them easily at the same shops or similar (if not closed because mob in front)
Be attentive with the baht fluctuation and off course gold price.
As say gold price is same everywhere, here to calculated the baht price against gold $US price


27 April 2011

US price 1509.75

Bath / US dollar 29.81 Baht

(15.244/31.1035) 0.490105615

(0.965/0.995) 0.969849246

21392.46968 Baht



Or go to :

http://www.ranthong.com/

[Beachlover]

If you LIVE in Thailand buying gold bar from gold shop is ok, if gold go up resale value will have increase, selling buying is minimal..
I'm curious... what percentage do you lose from the buying/selling process?


Note: Do not buy gold jewelry as gold content is less & cost fabrication is more.
Roughly how much more than the base value of the gold do you pay when you buy a gold chain in Thailand, typically?


Note: Do not buy Thai gold to take oversea, no pawn shops will want to buy your gold, the Thai content are not the same as the normal standard and cost of converting is to high
Is this a simple case of how many carats it is or are there other factors?

If you LIVE in Thailand buying gold bar from gold shop is ok, if gold go up resale value will have increase, selling buying is minimal..
I'm curious... what percentage do you lose from the buying/selling process?


Note: Do not buy gold jewelry as gold content is less & cost fabrication is more.
Roughly how much more than the base value of the gold do you pay when you buy a gold chain in Thailand, typically?


Note: Do not buy Thai gold to take oversea, no pawn shops will want to buy your gold, the Thai content are not the same as the normal standard and cost of converting is to high
Is this a simple case of how many carats it is or are there other factors?

if i remember correctly, around:
1/150 baht for buying / selling gold bar / 200 baht for jewelery, vary from shops, to me china town (Yaowarat) the best
2/ about 300-400 baht more for jewelery, but resell value less, purity of gold less, 0.75 carat approx compare to bar
3/ carats content from what i am aware off, they will tell you no government stamps (in Australia)

if i may suggest, see thaivisa.com in gold section, some true and false information in it, but some interesting

[Beachlover]

if i remember correctly, around:
1/150 baht for buying / selling gold bar / 200 baht for jewelery, vary from shops, to me china town (Yaowarat) the best
2/ about 300-400 baht more for jewelery, but resell value less, purity of gold less, 0.75 carat approx compare to bar
3/ carats content from what i am aware off, they will tell you no government stamps (in Australia)

if i may suggest, see thaivisa.com in gold section, some true and false information in it, but some interesting
Thanks Simcity... Some interesting info and lots of threads about this on ThaiVisa.

[dab69]

How about japanese stocks?

(Made a bit last year on BP fiasco :) )

My neighbor buys and sells gold at 2 reputable gold merchants here in Chinatown. Whenever he needs cash he sells a bit of it.........I didn't ask him where he keeps it, frankly I would prefer not to know.

I would be uneasy holding gold. Two years ago I invested in Newmont Mining
they primarily mine gold..I am pleased with the return.

[ikarus]

My neighbor buys and sells gold at 2 reputable gold merchants here in Chinatown. Whenever he needs cash he sells a bit of it.........I didn't as him where he keeps it, frankly I would prefer not to know.

I would be uneasy holding gold. Two years ago I invested in Newmont Mining
they primarily mine gold..I am pleased with the return.
If I lived in Thailand, I would do exactly what your neighbor doing. In China town there are places which buy back Gold that they sell. HSBC in BKK offers safe deposit boxes and I would trust them to keep the Gold over there. For nonresidents: they do require the address in Thailand to rent the box. Various financial advisers do recommend mining stocks as the way to leverage
gains in precious metals. For whatever reasons these stocks underperformed the Gold recently.

My neighbor buys and sells gold at 2 reputable gold merchants here in Chinatown. Whenever he needs cash he sells a bit of it.........I didn't as him where he keeps it, frankly I would prefer not to know.

I would be uneasy holding gold. Two years ago I invested in Newmont Mining
they primarily mine gold..I am pleased with the return.
If I lived in Thailand, I would do exactly what your neighbor doing. In China town there are places which buy back Gold that they sell. HSBC in BKK offers safe deposit boxes and I would trust them to keep the Gold over there. For nonresidents: they do require the address in Thailand to rent the box. Various financial advisers do recommend mining stocks as the way to leverage
gains in precious metals. For whatever reasons these stocks underperformed the Gold recently.


The stock price as apposed to the refined gold price reflects the cost of doing business ie. extraction, processing, labor, taxes etc.