It's a good time to sell physical gold or take some profits

 In my opinion, the next few days, maybe the next 2 or 3 weeks, is a good time to sell physical gold or take profits.  

Disclaimer

The Big Picture right now is that we seem to be sliding into the visible part of a recession that probably started in October or November of 2023.  Remember, especially you Millennials and Gen Z people, recessions are officially called months or years after they happen.   

Here's where we are now.  The stock markets appear to have peaked around July 11th or so.  That could be a short correction, but it's looking pretty serious so far, in the context of everything else going on.  The unemployment rate is beginning to tick up.  The official inflation measurements have been heading sideways or slightly down.  Several different major businesses, from fast food to retailers to drug stores, have announced their customers are running out of money, and are seriously looking for deals on nearly everything, even food.  The Fed (Federal Reserve) was even hinting that they might lower lower interest rates at the recent FOMC meeting in late July.  Those and many other things signal a recession is imminent.  By imminent, I mean that we've been in a recession for months, and the powers at be will have to acknowledge it soon, it will become visible to everyone, the "Oh shit!  We're in a recession" moment. 

When we head into a recession, officially, and The Fed lowers interest rates, the stock market generally heads down, and the price of gold usually goes with it, for a while.  I think that's about where we are now, as the gold price topped $2,500 today.  I think gold is having a last hurrah before the shit storm really hits.  

Now, if you buy gold to hold it forever, which is a very smart thing to do, then don't sell it.  But let's say you had the urge to buy gold back in late 2018, when it dropped down to around $1,200- $1,250 per ounce.  Let's say you bought two ounces then.  The price has basically doubled, maybe a bit less after the premium you paid over spot price.  If you sell one of those two ounces, then you got your money back.  The remaining ounce of gold has been paid for.  In effect, it's free, you have nothing in it.  You can sell half of your gold, and put that money into some other investment.  

If you missed the 2018 drop, like most people, but bought gold a couple of years ago, when it around $1950 an ounce, you're up around $500 per ounce, roughly 25%.  You can sell a bit of it, get some of your money out, and invest that money in something else.  This reduces the amount per ounce that you have in the remaining gold, and frees up some money for another investment.  

My thinking is that gold may go up a bit more, to maybe $2,550 per ounce or so, MAYBE.  But we'll see more economic crises happen soon, and the recession should become completely obvious, in September or October 2024.  When that happens, stock will drop a lot, and gold will head back down for a while, too.  In addition, we will likely see a bit of deflation, actual falling prices on many items, in late 2024, or early 2025.  This is another reason the price should drop.  At that point, it will again be a pretty good time to buy gold (and quality stocks), when they hit bottom.  All of this DOES NOT apply to silver, which seems to be on its own track right now, and is off its highs.  

Again, these are my personal opinions.  Do your own research, due diligence, and consult any professionals needed before making any investment decisions.  Also, read my Disclaimer, linked above.