Even with the recent declines in the gold price, a widening gulf is opening up between the yellow metal’s price and that of its traditionally more expensive sister metal, platinum.

At press time, gold was trading at $1,633 an ounce, nearly $100 more than platinum, which is now trading at $1,544 an ounce.

This comes more than a month after gold first reached parity with platinum in August.

Analysts have said that while, in the past, there was something of a fixed relationship between gold and platinum prices, now investors are starting to view them differently. Gold has been viewed as a “safe haven” for investors, who have flocked to it amid economic uncertainty.

However, platinum is generally viewed as an industrial metal, which makes it vulnerable to the economy. “The main drag on platinum is not only worries about the economic outlook, but also the situation in Europe,” one analyst told South Africa’s Business Day, adding he expected the metal’s price to recover.

Meanwhile, Huw Daniel, president of Platinum Guild International, says he hopes that the new situation will make people take a second look at platinum.

“We have definitely noticed a shift,” he says. “The customer that is looking for an 18k wedding band is drifting over to platinum.”

JCK