Historical Archive · XAU/USD · Wednesday
Gold Price on September 5, 1979
International gold spot price for Wednesday, September 5, 1979— sourced from gold-api.com's continuous historical archive of London gold fixings.
XAU / USD
—
per troy ounce
USD / Gram
—
1 gram
USD / Tola
—
11.664 grams
Price action on September 5, 1979
1-day move
vs prior session
7-day move
rolling week
30-day move
rolling month
YTD
since 1 Jan 1979
Calendar position
Day 248 of 365
Trading day
211th of 311
Position in 1979's range
34% (low $216.90 → high $543.00)
Surrounding ±15 trading days
Why no country breakdown? Reliable historical exchange-rate data only extends back to 1 January 1990. For dates between 1970 and 1989 we publish the verified XAU/USD price — the same global benchmark used by central banks and bullion dealers — but local-currency conversions are not provided to avoid showing inaccurate historical figures. For dates from 1990 onwards, full country tables (PKR, INR, AED, SAR, GBP, EUR and 100+ more) are available.
Gold in 1979 — at a glance
Approximate price band
$244 – $512 / troy oz
Gold doubled. Iran's revolution, the second oil shock, the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in late December, and 13% US inflation drove a panic bid for gold. Volcker became Fed Chair in August.
Key events that year
- Jan
Iranian Revolution
Shah deposed. Geopolitical risk premium added to gold.
- Aug
Volcker becomes Fed Chair
Initial market reaction was sceptical; gold continued higher.
- Dec
Soviet invasion of Afghanistan
Cold War tensions spike. Gold finishes the year at $512.
The 1970s — gold's break from fiat
On 15 August 1971 President Nixon ended USD convertibility to gold, dismantling the Bretton Woods system. Free-floating gold rose from a Bretton-Woods price of $35/oz to a January 1980 nominal peak near $850/oz. The decade was defined by stagflation, two oil shocks (1973–74 and 1979), Soviet–US tensions, and double-digit US inflation — an environment in which gold became the textbook inflation hedge.
Frequently asked questions
What was the gold price on September 5, 1979?
Historical gold price archives for September 5, 1979. The exact USD price for this date may be unavailable if it fell on a market holiday or weekend.
Why are local-currency conversions not shown for this date?
Reliable historical exchange-rate data only goes back to 1 January 1990. For dates between 1970 and 1989 we display the international XAU/USD spot price (which is the global benchmark) but cannot accurately convert to local currencies (PKR, INR, AED, etc.) without trustworthy historical FX data. For dates from 1990 onwards, country-by-country price tables are available on each daily page.
What was the gold price band in 1979?
In 1979, gold traded approximately in the $244 – $512 range. Gold doubled. Iran's revolution, the second oil shock, the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in late December, and 13% US inflation drove a panic bid for gold. Volcker became Fed Chair in August.
How does Goldify Pro source this data?
Daily XAU/USD spot prices for 1970–present are sourced from gold-api.com, which maintains a continuous historical archive of London gold-fix prices. We display the price at face value with no editorial adjustments.
Was 1970–1989 a good period to own gold?
Gold was an outstanding investment from 1971–1980 (rising from $35 to $850, a 24× return) and a poor one from 1980–1985 (falling to $284). The 1980s as a whole saw gold underperform stocks. The 50-year history page covers the full picture.
Other historical years
Interactive Chart
Full XAU/USD chart since 1970
50-Year History
Full half-century gold story
Live Gold Rates
Today's prices for 100+ countries
Gold Calculators
Tola, gram, karat, polish
Gold in 1979
All ${year} daily prices
Gold Reference Guide
Karats, purity, weight units
Gold price on September 5, 1979: detailed analysis
September 5, 1979 fell on a Wednesday — the 211th trading session of 311 for 1979. The international XAU/USD spot price closed at an unrecorded level, equivalent to — and —. This represents the London gold fix benchmark in US dollars; physical gold in any country at the time was sold at this rate plus local taxes, dealer premiums, and currency-conversion costs.
At this point in 1979, gold was +44.76% year-to-date versus the 1 January open of $227.28/oz. The 1-day move from the prior session was +1.23%. Across the trailing trading week the price moved +3.07%. Over the prior ~30 trading sessions, gold moved +6.13%.
Within 1979's observed range — a low of $216.90/oz and a high of $543.00/oz — this date sat at roughly the 34th percentile. That places the day in the lower-middle of the year's price band.
Historical archives like this one are useful for several purposes: settling estate valuations and inheritance calculations involving gold purchased decades ago, researching the long-term performance of gold as an asset class, understanding the impact of major historical events (oil shocks, Cold War flashpoints, monetary policy shifts), and for academic study of the post–Bretton-Woods era.
We display data with no editorial markup. The XAU/USD price for this date comes from gold-api.com, which maintains continuous London-fix records back to the start of free-floating gold in 1971. Per-gram and per-tola figures are calculated using the fixed conversion of 1 troy ounce = 31.1035 grams, and 1 tola = 11.664 grams.
For full country-by-country price tables (24K, 22K, 21K, 18K per tola/gram in 100+ local currencies), visit any date from 1990 onwards. For an interactive chart of the entire gold-price history since 1970, see our 50-year analysis page. And for today's live rate in your country, check live rates here.
Disclaimer: This page is for informational and historical-research purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Prices shown are international XAU/USD spot reference figures; actual physical-market prices in any country at the time may have varied due to local taxes, premiums, and currency-conversion factors.