Costco has begun selling gold bars

People go to Costco for lots of different reasons but to invest money isn’t very high on the list. At least, not until now.

However, the membership warehouse has begun selling a limited number of one-ounce gold bars and has found an eager market. On Costco’s quarterly earnings call this week, Costco Chief Financial Officer Richard Galanti confirmed the company is selling the precious metal on its website.

“But when we load them on the site, they’re typically gone within a few hours, and we limit two per member,” Galanti said.

Buying gold bars is a lot more expensive than stocking up on toilet paper. The price of gold fluctuates daily but on Wednesday, the gold bars were priced at $1,979.99 per ounce, meaning two would cost nearly $4,000.

But in an inflationary environment, many people feel more secure putting their money into tangible assets like gold. Financial advisers have cautioned investors about putting too many assets into gold, saying rising interest rates can limit gains.

While many people prefer the security of owning physical gold, such as the gold bars Costco is selling, there are other ways to own the commodity.

ConsumerAffairs ranks the best gold dealers here and gold IRA companies here.