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Friday, November 2, 2007

At current prices, $10 million in gold ... are 31.4 bars

...That fits into a suitcase. Granted, it's too heavy to carry...


At current prices, $10 million in gold are 12,574 troy ounces.

If you have 400 oz bars, it takes 31.4 bars.

1 400 oz bar is 200mm x 80mm x 45mm

If you arrange the bars like six packs and stack 5 on top of one another, you can arrange 40 bars in the following space

200mm * 3 = 600 mm = 22. 62 inches length
80mm * 2 = 160 mm = 6.3 inches width
45mm * 5 = 225 mm = 8.9 inches height

( source for the dimensions of bars: http://www.taxfreegold.co.uk/goldbardimensions.html )

That fits into a suitcase. Granted, it's too heavy to carry as these are 0.391 tonnes or 862 pounds.

While it makes gold less portable than diamonds, a car can easily carry such a load. Gold's uniformity may be more important than a diamond that needs to rely on certificates.

If you can afford it, you may want to carry a stack of both - and don't forget some gold coins as you are unlikely to get any change if fiat money is no longer accepted.

Best wishes,

Axel

Axel Merk
Manager of the Merk Hard Currency Fund, http://www.merkfund.com/
(650)323 4341