2013 was a brutal year for gold — its sharpest annual decline in more than thirty years. The catalyst was the Federal Reserve's signal that it would begin "tapering" its bond purchases, the "taper tantrum" that sent real yields up and gold down. Investors fled gold-backed exchange-traded funds in record volumes, and the metal shed roughly a quarter of its value.
It was the steep middle leg of the correction from the 2011 record toward the 2015 bottom. For long-term holders it was painful; in hindsight, it was the market wringing out the excess of the post-crisis bull before the next chapter began.
Key events of 2013
- 2013-06-19
The taper tantrum
The Fed signals an end to QE; real yields jump and gold suffers its worst year since 1981.