Calculating Historical Platinum Price
First discovered in North Africa or South America, platinum is a relatively young precious metal compared to gold and silver. Although archaeologists discovered traces of platinum in the gold used in ancient Egypt, it is believed that the first people to use the precious metal were the indigenous tribes of South America, who used it to make jewellery. Antonio de Ulloa, a Spanish naval officer, is the man credited with bringing platinum to Europe in the mid-18th century. Today, platinum is still an extremely rare precious metal and very much sought after. It is, for instance, used to make jewellery, watches, investment products, catalytic converters and electrical components.
The price of platinum has slowly dropped since 2011 – possibly because of the decline of diesel vehicles – when it cost approximately $1,900.00 per ounce. However, if you had purchased an ounce of platinum at the start of 1998 you would have paid approximately $400.00; you could have then sold it in 2008 for just over $2,200.00 – you could have turned a $10,000.00 investment into more than $55,000.00. After a sharp drop in its price at the end of 2008 you could have purchased platinum at $800.00 per ounce; if at that point you had invested $10,000.00, in less than three years after its price went up to $1900.00 per ounce, your platinum would have been worth $23,000.00.
Platinum prices have had moments of volatility, but it is worth noting that its price inconsistency can work in the favour of people looking for investment opportunities. It is an important precious metal that is still in demand throughout the world. As recently as 2016 you could have invested $10,000.00 in platinum at $850.00 per ounce; six months later your investment would have been worth $15,000.00. The BGO platinum investment calculator will allow you to see how platinum has performed from 1993 through to the present day; you will be able to see the profits you could have made by investing your money in platinum at different times over the last 50-plus years.