Another major impetus has been the rapid rise in US government debt resulting from increased military spending, government spending to bolster corporations in the COVID crisis, and the rise in interest rate since 2022.

The US debt has now risen to $36 trillion with the interest bill running at an annual rate of $1 trillion a year—a situation which is acknowledged to be unsustainable, including by the Fed.

As John Ciampaglia, chief executive of Sprott Asset Management, a firm which specialises in precious metals and critical minerals, told the Financial Times one of the biggest drivers of the gold price since 2000 has been the growth of government debt.

“Global levels of debt have exploded over the past 25 years, they are starting to really weigh in economies and budgets,” he said.

（to be continued）