Metro Vancouver gold dealers see demand surge amid economic uncertainty
U.S. tariffs and stock market turmoil have many turning to gold as a safe haven, precious metal dealers say
As the price of gold continues to climb, Rina Bhattacharjee says she's considering buying more of it.
"Gold is definitely a good choice to invest [in] at this point of time," said the Toronto resident, who was out shopping in Vancouver while on vacation.
While she occasionally invests in the precious metal, she says she's noticed a growing number of others doing the same.
Bhattacharjee is one of many Canadians turning to gold as a way to weather market instability.
Robert Levy, director at Border Gold Corp. in Surrey, B.C., says his company — one of Canada's largest Royal Canadian Mint direct distributors — has seen a sharp increase in demand.
"Particularly in gold sales, we've seen about a 40 per cent uptick in demand in the first quarter of 2025 versus 2024," he told CBC News. "Investors want a little safety and comfort in their portfolio."
That interest is rising alongside concerns about a possible recession, he says, spurred in part by worsening trade tensions between Canada and the United States.
Trump slapped a 25 per cent tariff on Canadian goods (and 10 per cent on energy) last month, supposedly in response to drugs and migrants coming into the U.S. across the northern border, but made some exceptions for importers who can prove the products they're bringing in from Canada are compliant with the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).
Trump further imposed stiff tariffs on nations worldwide on Wednesday, sending global stock markets downward.
Canada's main stock index, the S&P/TSX Composite, fell 1,142 points, or 4.6 per cent — one of its largest single-day drops since 2020.
For many, the turbulence is reinforcing gold's reputation as a safe haven.
"Gold has always been the hedge of uncertainty," said John Steen, director of the Bradshaw Research Institute for Mining and Minerals at the University of British Columbia. "The uncertainty and the chance of recession, which is arising with the trade war, is going to push up the gold price over the longer term."
Steen says similar patterns emerged during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, and again when Trump began his first term in 2017 — both periods when gold prices spiked.
Gold's value is tied in part to its supply, Steen says.
"Not a lot of gold gets produced and the production rates are fairly constant, it's controlled, and it's also used as a store of wealth by governments."
But while gold may offer security, Steen warns against "getting on the gold bandwagon."
He points to a quote from popular investor Warren Buffett: "Be fearful when others are greedy and be greedy when others are fearful."
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission has also advised caution, noting that while gold prices often rise during periods of economic anxiety, the primary beneficiaries are often sellers — not late-coming buyers.
The agency also warns about scams, inflated premiums and counterfeit products targeting inexperienced investors.
Despite those warnings, demand remains strong.
At Vancouver Bullion & Currency Exchange (VBCE), trader Garo Mavyan says many buyers now are first-timers and interest isn't limited to gold.
"They hear from their friends and family, read the news, so a lot of people are jumping into it for the first time," he said.
But a surge in demand has brought some complications, Mavyan says.
VBCE sources much of its inventory from the Royal Canadian Mint, but also relies on U.S. suppliers — a process now complicated by Canada's retaliatory tariffs on American precious metals.
"Probably less than 50 per cent of the items that we stock come in from U.S.-based suppliers," he said. "We've had to pivot, but we have relationships with other suppliers around the world."
As of this week, an ounce of gold costs about $4,300, after surging almost 20 per cent in just three months.
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With files from Pinki Wong, Arthur White-Crummey and The Associated Press