Gold isn't the best store of value if stability of value is the only concern. In places like India, gold jewelry has a prominent cultural value (a part of most

Gold isn't the best store of value if stability of value is the only concern. In places like India, gold jewelry has a prominent cultural value (a part of most wedding rituals, for example). So its desired and even required no matter its price - though demand is, I imagine, pretty elastic. The volatility of gold prices competes with 8% inflation, Even if gold is volatile, it competes favorably in an investment environment where 1) cash inflates at 8% a year 2) private banks can often be risky, with many going bankrupt over the years 3) the average person has no access to US T-bills 4) gold can be melted any time to make jewelry anew, so one can always be fashionable (keeping the use-value of the material fresh) 5) gold can be pawned in emergencies, in practically every town 6) where access to digital banking may be spotty, transporting jewelry is an easy way to transport wealth A store of value has many attributes that make it a good store of value - ubiquity, tradability, use-value, transportability, its value relative to the other options in the investment environment.