Gold terminology

Gold Glossary

Understand the terminology behind live gold prices, purity, weights, currencies and the international bullion market.

• Spot Price

  The live market price for immediate delivery of one troy ounce of gold.

• XAU

  The ISO 4217 currency code for one troy ounce of gold.

• Troy Ounce

  The standard weight unit for precious metals, equal to 31.1034768 grams.

• Karat

  A measure of gold purity expressed in 24ths.

• Fineness

  Purity expressed as parts per thousand (e.g. 999, 916, 750).

• Hallmark

  Official stamp certifying the purity of a gold item.

• Tola

  A traditional South Asian weight unit for gold, equal to 11.6638038 grams.

• Premium

  The markup charged above spot to buy physical gold.

• Bid–Ask Spread

  The gap between the price a dealer buys at and the price they sell at.

• Gram

  The base weight unit used to quote retail gold in most countries.

• Bullion

  Investment-grade gold sold by weight, usually as bars or coins.

• LBMA

  London Bullion Market Association — sets the global benchmark for gold.