AURUDEX
YOUR STOCK WENT UP. YOUR DOLLAR WENT DOWN.
What happened in 1971, and what everything looks like priced in gold.
Coming soon to the App StoreAUGUST 15, 1971
On a Sunday night, President Nixon went on TV and "temporarily" suspended the dollar's convertibility into gold.
Since Bretton Woods in 1944, foreign governments could trade dollars for gold at $35 an ounce. After that night, they couldn't. By March 1973, the dollar was floating.
Gold stopped being the dollar's anchor and started being its measuring stick. The charts below use it that way.
- 1834 The Coinage Act puts gold at about $20.69/oz. An 1837 tweak makes it $20.67, where it stays for a century. Coinage Act of 1834 (FRASER, St. Louis Fed)
- APR 5, 1933 Executive Order 6102 orders Americans to turn in their gold. American Presidency Project
- JAN 30, 1934 The Gold Reserve Act. Gold is revalued to $35/oz. Federal Reserve History
- JULY 1944 Bretton Woods: the world pegs to the dollar, the dollar to gold at $35. Federal Reserve History
- AUG 15, 1971 Nixon closes the gold window. Federal Reserve History
- MARCH 1973 Major currencies float. Bretton Woods is over. U.S. Dept. of State, Office of the Historian
- DEC 31, 1974 Americans can legally own gold again. National Archives (EO 11825, Pub. L. 93-373)
THE FLAT LINE, THEN THE BREAK.
Gold in dollars per ounce, 1833 to today.
- Gold, $ per troy ounce (log scale)
IN GOLD, THE S&P 500 WENT NOWHERE FOR 50 YEARS.
The S&P 500 in ounces of gold vs in dollars, since 1871.
- Priced in gold (oz, log scale)
- Priced in dollars, rebased to the same start
THE $ IS MELTING.
Purchasing power of $1 since 1913.
- A dollar, in January 1913 money
HOMES GOT EXPENSIVE. IN DOLLARS.
Median new home price in dollars vs ounces of gold since 1963.
- Priced in gold (oz, log scale)
- Priced in dollars, rebased to the same start
AN HOUR OF WORK, IN GOLD.
Federal minimum wage per hour in grams of gold since 1938.
- Grams of gold per hour at the federal minimum wage
IN GOLD, EGGS ARE ON SALE.
A dozen eggs in milligrams of gold since 1980.
- Milligrams of gold per dozen grade A large eggs
PRICE ANYTHING IN GOLD
Uses annual average gold prices and CPI.
EVERY STOCK, PRICED IN GOLD.
A free iPhone app. Pick a measuring stick: gold by default, or Bitcoin, eggs, gas, hours of minimum wage, homes or 1971 dollars. No accounts, no ads, no tracking.
AURUDEXWATCHLIST
- SPY0.153 oz▼ 2.1% in gold
- AAPL0.058 oz▼ 4.8% in gold
- NVDA0.042 oz▲ 6.3% in gold
- KO0.016 oz▼ 9.0% in gold
AURUDEXWATCHLIST
- SPY0.153 oz▲ 12.4% in dollars
- MSFT0.118 oz▼ 3.2% in gold
- BRK-B0.114 oz▼ 1.7% in gold
- QQQ0.141 oz▲ 0.9% in gold
Illustrative screens. Values are examples, not quotes.
Tickers sit dead center. Tap a row to flip between "in gold" and "in dollars." The gap is the story.
| What you get | Free | Pro · $4.99 once |
|---|---|---|
| Gold and Bitcoin measuring sticks | Yes | Yes |
| The 1971 story, share cards | Yes | Yes |
| 1M, 1Y, 5Y, 10Y charts | Yes | Yes |
| Watchlist | 10 tickers | Unlimited |
| Silver, eggs, gas, min wage, homes, 1971 dollars | – | Yes |
| 30Y and MAX history | – | Yes |
| Home screen widgets | – | Yes |
| Custom stick ("priced in tacos") | – | Yes |
TOSS A COIN IN THE VAULT. Optional tips of $0.99, $2.99 or $9.99 keep the data flowing. No subscriptions, ever in v1.