- Title: 231 AT COVID-19 Gold-buying rush
- Date: 17th April 2020
- Description:As is usually the case in times of crisis, gold is bought, as the precious metal is considered a reliable currency in such difficult times. The Muenze Oesterreich (Austrian Mint), the institute in Austria which produces and issues gold coins, has sold a lot more on the Internet since the exit restrictions. In March the shop of Muenze Oesterreich (Austrian Mint) had to be closed as any other shops, so people started to order their gold coins through the Internet, over night the demand increased tenfold. As soon as the point of sale in Vienna opened again, there were long queues in front of it. The demand for gold has increased during the COVID crisis; at the moment they sell around 10,000 ounces of gold per day. As the shop has also restricted access, the pavement in front is divided in areas for the people waiting, and water is distributed. Gerhard Starsich, Director General of Austrian Mint, explains that people buy more gold as they fear the time of crises and want to secure their wealth. Shotlist - People queue in front of the institute Muenze Oesterreich (Austrian Mint) - Marks on the pavement (access restrictions) - Water is distributed in front of Muenze Oesterreich (Austrian Mint) - TC 00:20 SOUNDBITE (GERMAN) Gerhard Starsich, Director General of the Muenze Oesterreich: “We had to keep the shop closed until Monday. We unlocked again on Tuesday. There was a queue that went this far. And for three days the rush has been on this scale. People ordered online and we increased our gold sales tenfold from one day to the next. Our stores were then empty. And for the entire month of March we had sold in the evening what we had produced during the day. We currently sell approximately 10,000 ounces of gold a day.” Reporter`s question (GERMAN): “Why do people buy gold?” - TC 01:19 SOUNDBITE (GERMAN) Gerhard Starsich, Director General of the Muenze Oesterreich (Austrian Mint): “Many people buy gold as an investment. We also recommend our clients to hold about 5-10 percent of their total assets in gold, simply for security reasons. In times of economic crises, such as the Lehman crisis in 2008 and the following years, interest in precious metals, and in particular gold, has risen sharply. The reason is that in turbulent economic times, people see that other securities are losing value and gold is generally stable. People buy a lot of gold when they are afraid of economic crises. They want to keep their assets safe.” - TC 02:12 SOUNDBITE (GERMAN) Gerhard Starsich, Director General of the Muenze Oesterreich (Austrian Mint): “In 2020 we expect to sell around 1 million ounces of gold coins, in 2017 we sold around 800,000 ounces of gold, and last year we sold around 300,000 ounces of gold. Gold sales are very volatile.” - Outside shots: People queue in front of the Muenze Oesterreich (Austrian Mint) - Inside shots: C/U disinfectant - Staff with face mask behind plexiglass wall
- Collection: ORF
- Genre:News
- Producer:ORF
- Transmission Date:17/04/2020
- Decade: 2020s