Even so, shares of gold mining stocks have suffered lately, hurt mainly by higher energy and exploration costs.
In fact, the stocks of the large gold miners have become nearly as undervalued as they were during the 2008 financial crisis.
The last time shares of these big gold producers were this cheap, they rallied by 283%.
At these levels, that means it's time to take a closer look at shares of big gold miners - while they are still a bargain.
Here's what you need to know...
The Gold Bull Market is Not Over
A number of factors point to higher prices for gold:
- Real interest rates remain in negative territory. Sitting in cash right now is a losing proposition.
- The austerity movement in Europe is being replaced with more fiscal easing. The European Central Bank may have to print trillions of euros of debt to keep the Eurozone intact.
- The odds of more fiscal stimulus in China and the U.S. have increased, as two of the world's largest economies struggle to gain traction.
- Despite healthy demand and rising prices, global production of the metal rose just 0.7% annually from 1999 through 2011.
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