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Due to the unstable global situation, including the coronavirus pandemic and the conflict between Ukraine and Russia, the cost of materials used in jewelry continues to rise, and it is predicted that many brands will undoubtedly be forced to revise their prices in 2022. GYPPHY is no exception.

This time, we will examine how the prices of gold, palladium, and nickel are likely to change in the future, and how much this will affect the price of jewelry.

■ About the price of gold
Gold is considered a safe asset, and when the global situation becomes unstable, investors, in particular, start buying it in large quantities, causing its price to rise (although they are not actually buying the physical gold, but rather a financial product called futures, we will omit the details here as it falls under the realm of investment).

In 2020, when the coronavirus began to spread in earnest, the price of gold rose sharply. Incidentally, GYPPHY is a brand that was launched in October 2019, and at that time the price of gold was about 5,100 yen per gram, but today, March 9, 2022, the retail price of gold is 8,402 yen, an increase of approximately 65%.From Tanaka Precious Metals Co., Ltd.).

Furthermore, the price of gold is not limited to this, and is expected to continue rising in the short term. In fact, yesterday, on the 8th, Goldman Sachs revised its gold price forecast upward, projecting a price of $1,950/oz for 3 months, $2,500/oz for 6 months, and $2,500/oz for 12 months if the unstable situation continues (see article below).

(https://www.kitco.com/news/2022-03-08/Goldman-Sachs-pushes-up-its-gold-price-forecasts.html)

If the price were to reach $2,500/oz, it's quite possible that the retail price in Japanese yen would exceed 10,000 yen per gram, representing a price increase of approximately 20% compared to the current price.

■ Palladium
Palladium is primarily used in the production of white gold and is actually more expensive per gram than gold. It is frequently used in automotive catalysts and semiconductors, and its price has been steadily rising due to this demand. However, because Russia is the main producer of palladium (accounting for 40% of the world's production), concerns about supply disruptions due to sanctions have caused prices to reach a new record high in yesterday's trading, and are expected to rise even further. Retail prices have risen by approximately 35% in the last 10 days.

(https://fujidental.co.jp/graph07.html)

■ Nickel
Nickel is a metal commonly used in fast fashion accessories (and is a major cause of allergic reactions), but it is also an essential material for electric vehicles, and its price had been rising as well. However, just like palladium, Russia is one of the main producers, and concerns about supply due to economic sanctions have caused its price to surge by about 250% in the last two days (although a short squeeze investment phenomenon is also a factor, I will omit that discussion).

*It appears this transaction has been temporarily suspended due to various circumstances.
sauce:https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/lme-nickel-trading-halted-big-short-hits-big-trouble-andy-home-2022-03-08/

As described above, if this unstable global situation continues, we predict that the prices of the materials mentioned above will rise much faster than expected, and many brands will have to revise their prices. This may not affect GYPPHY much as we use moissanite, but Russia is also famous as a diamond producing country, so natural diamond jewelry is likely to rise in price even further.

While this will vary greatly depending on the design, I predict that for fine jewelry using gold, it wouldn't be surprising to see price increases of at least 20%, and possibly even double, across various brands over the next year (this is purely the author's prediction).

I can only pray that everything will settle down soon and we will return to a peaceful world.