When you hear the words “precious metals”, jewellery is probably the first thing that comes to mind. The first metals you think of in this context are gold and silver. But what are the others, some of which are even more expensive? Read on to find out which metals make the top ten most expensive, where they are found and what they are used for.
Did you know? The world’s largest gold producers are Australia, Russia, the USA and Peru.
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Precious metals as an investment opportunity
Before we get to the list of the most expensive metals, you may be wondering whether it makes sense to invest in them. As with everything else, there are advantages and disadvantages. Precious metals are definitely among the more conservative investments, and these days you certainly no longer have to own the metals physically.
- Precious metals hold their value against inflation
The biggest point in favour of investing in precious metals is how well they hold their value against inflation and other market forces. Shares can fluctuate, and cryptocurrencies can fluctuate a great deal. Precious metals, however, retain their value over time and their volatility is low.
- Precious metals are in short supply
We cannot mine precious metals from deep within the earth forever. Because they are a constantly shrinking resource, precious metals carry a built-in mark of scarcity. That is why they will always be in high demand. For this reason, using them for investment can prove a wise idea. Even so, gold is still being mined. Roughly 3,000 tonnes are added worldwide every year. However, this is expected and does not move the price significantly.
- The initial investment in precious metals is high
When you invest in precious metals, you need to be prepared to part with a considerable sum of money. Precious metals hold their value exceptionally well, but they also cost a fair amount at the outset. This creates a strong barrier to entry that other investment options may not have.
A key advantage in the Czech Republic, however, is that Czech tax rules treat gold, silver and other precious metals as movable property, so there this investment is not subject to income tax for individuals (Czech income tax rules on the sale of movable property). Legal entities trading in gold must pay tax there. Tax treatment differs from country to country, so check the rules where you live with a local tax advisor or tax office before investing.
1. Rhodium
The title of the world’s most expensive precious metal goes to rhodium.
This extremely rare metal is best described as a silvery-white, hard, corrosion-resistant, inert metal. It is found in platinum or nickel ores together with other precious metals from the platinum group.
As with palladium, the world’s second most expensive precious metal, about 80% of the world’s rhodium is used as one of the catalysts in three-way catalytic converters in cars.
2. Palladium
The world’s second most expensive precious metal is palladium.
Palladium is most commonly used in catalytic converters, which convert up to 90% of all harmful gases in car exhaust into less harmful substances. It is also used in electronics, groundwater purification, hydrogen purification, dentistry and medicine. It is also used to make some of the most expensive jewellery in the world.
3. Gold
The world’s third most expensive precious metal is gold. This precious metal needs little introduction, as it is probably the best-known metal in the world. In its purest form it is a bright yellow, dense, soft, malleable and ductile metal, and it is one of the least reactive chemical elements on Earth.
Gold is often found in its free elemental form, as nuggets or grains in rocks, veins and alluvial deposits. China produces the most gold, an estimated 440 tonnes a year. To give you an idea, all the gold in the world would fit into a larger sports stadium.
Did you know? Roughly half of the world’s gold is in the form of jewellery. Once again, it is most popular in China and India.
4. Ruthenium
In fourth place on our list of the most expensive precious metals is ruthenium. It is a rare transition metal discovered in 1844 at Kazan State University by the Russian-born scientist Karl Ernst Claus.
He named the element ruthenium in honour of Russia, as Ruthenia is Latin for Russia. It is most commonly found in ores with other platinum-group metals in the mountains of North and South America. It is widely used in electronic devices.
5. Iridium
Iridium is a hard, silvery-white transition metal considered to be the second densest metal on Earth. It is the metal with the highest resistance to corrosion and can be found in abundance in meteorites and the Earth’s crust.
Iridium was discovered in 1803 by Smithson Tennant, who named the precious metal after the Greek goddess Iris, because its striking salts resembled all the colours of the rainbow.
South Africa produces the largest quantities of this metal, which it exports to countries around the world for use in products such as watches and compasses, and various parts in the automotive industry.
6. Osmium
Osmium is a hard, bluish-white transition metal from the platinum group, which can be found as a trace element in alloys and platinum ores.
It is the densest naturally occurring element and is commonly used to make fountain pen nibs and electrical contacts.
7. Rhenium
Rhenium is considered one of the rarest metals in the Earth’s crust, and it has the third highest melting point and the second highest boiling point of all stable elements.
This rare metal is often used in nickel-based superalloys in combustion chambers, turbine blades and exhaust nozzles of jet engines.
8. Silver
In 8th place on our list of precious metals is one of the best-known and most common metals on the planet: silver. It has the highest electrical and thermal conductivity and reflectivity of all known metals.
It is found in the Earth’s crust in elemental form, or with other precious metals and in minerals such as chlorargyrite and argentite. However, most of the world’s silver is produced as a by-product of refining gold, lead, copper and zinc.
Surprisingly, silver is widely used in the production of gold coins. It is also used in solar panels, water filtration systems and, of course, jewellery.
9. Scandium
The next most expensive precious metal in the world is scandium. Scandium was first discovered in Scandinavia in 1879 through spectral analysis of the minerals euxenite and gadolinite. The credit goes to the Swedish scientist Lars Nilsson, who named it after Scandinavia.
It can be found in most deposits of rare earths and uranium compounds, but it is extracted only from certain ores in a small number of mines around the world.
10. Indium
Indium is a soft, silvery-white chemical element and one of the softest metals on the planet. It is most commonly used in the semiconductor industry for goods such as alloys, solders and soft-metal high-vacuum seals.
