You might have heard or seen the term “gold ton” or “gold tonne” used.
You may have even seen some impressive images of government central bank gold vaults who collectively hoard about 1 in 5 troy ounces of gold ever mined to date.
But have you ever thought about how many gold ounces these ton dropping articles are nonchalantly mentioning?
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The image FT used in yesterday's article,
— James Henry Anderson (@jameshenryand) August 2, 2019
does little justice.
Central banks bought 651.5 metric tons of $Gold in 2018
Do you know what a TON of #Gold #Bullion looks like?
How much it weighs?
What it's worth in fiat US dollars?
Have a look yourself...https://t.co/YJaulsUhw3 pic.twitter.com/mhnFx0hjFw
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How many Ounces Are in a Ton of Gold Bullion?
For .999 fine physical gold bullion or any other precious metal, like silver bullion, for instance, a metric tonne is exactly 32,150.7 troy ounces of gold or other precious metal.
Now that you know there are 32,150.7 troy ounces of gold in a ton of gold bullion.
Perhaps you are now wondering what that amount of gold bullion is worth in fiat US dollars.
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How much is a Ton of Gold Worth?
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When referring to precious physical metals, a ton refers to a metric tonne.
The British ton (i.e., tonne with British spelling) is the metric ton of gold we use in the precious metals industry. A metric tonne is 2,240 pounds in total.
Be careful not to make the mistake of using the U.S. ton as the short ton is only 2,000 pounds total.
It could be a very costly error next time you are in the market to buy a tonne of gold.
A 240-pound mistake could cost you 3,500 oz of gold bullion.
A potential fiat US dollar valued mistake of about $5.25 million at the moment given today’s gold price per ounce of around $1,500 oz.
If you have an interest in best practices for buying gold and selling gold, be sure to pick up our free Gold & Silver Guide.