No One Can Call Gold A Safe Haven Ever Again

We have just witnessed the most horrific gold sell-off in 30 years.

And the gold bugs can say almost whatever they want about it.  They can call it a correction or a conspiracy.  They can blame it on deflation, or even Goldman Sachs.

But one thing they cannot say: gold is a safe haven.

"It's interesting, however, that gold prices are falling like a rock — or like a gold brick — at a time of heightened global uncertainty," said economist and gold agnostic Gary Shilling in an email on Monday.  "Where is the safe haven appeal of gold?  Is gold simply one more commodity falling with the herd?"

In just about three trading sessions, gold has plunged by over $200/oz.

"We've traded gold for nearly four decades and we've never… ever… ever… seen anything like what we've witnessed in the past two trading sessions," said Dennis Gartman in a note on Monday.

Gartman warned his readers about gold's safe haven status a year ago in the wake of a much more tame move: "Safe havens are safe. Safe havens are stable; gold is not safe and certainly it is not stable."

The bottom line is that gold is not a safe haven.  In other words, it is not a stable place to store your wealth.  The horrific sell-off of the last few days is clear evidence of this.

"Any thoughts about persistent safe havens (other than perhaps cash under your mattress) are dangerous," warned Goldman Sachs' Jim O'Neill.