Gold’s modern history begins in August 1971, when the United States ended the dollar’s convertibility into gold and the price was set free to float. Everything since is a study in regimes — long stretches where the market rewards one style of trading and quietly destroys another.
1971–1980: the first mania
Freed from its $35 peg, gold rose relentlessly through the inflationary 1970s, culminating in the parabolic run to $850 in January 1980 as inflation, oil shocks and geopolitics converged. A trend-following approach compounded fortunes; every attempt to fade the move was punished. The lesson: in a true trend regime, mean-reversion is the expensive strategy.
1980–2001: the long winter
Two decades of grinding decline and stagnation followed, as inflation was defeated and real yields turned strongly positive. Gold fell from $850 to $253. Trend systems starved; the regime rewarded patience, ranges and, mostly, absence. The lesson: no strategy deserves loyalty across regimes — and standing aside is a position.
2001–2011: the secular bull
Falling real yields, a weakening dollar, the financial crisis and quantitative easing drove a ten-year advance from $250 to $1,920. Breakouts followed through; dips were bought. Trend and momentum styles worked again — until September 2011, when they abruptly stopped working.
2011–2015: the unwinding
A 45% decline that trapped everyone who had learned the previous decade’s lesson too well. Rallies failed serially; breakouts reversed. Range and fade strategies — worthless for the prior ten years — became the only styles being paid.
2015–present: new highs, new buyers
The modern era added a structural buyer — central banks accumulating reserves at a pace unseen in half a century — alongside the old drivers of real yields and the dollar. Gold broke to successive all-time highs after 2020 with a character all its own: strong underlying bid, sharp but shallow corrections, regime shifts arriving faster than in any previous era.
The systematic conclusion
Half a century of data makes one point repeatedly: the profitable strategy is a function of the regime in force. This is why modern systematic approaches — GOLD STRIKE’s among them — put regime detection first: classify the market as trending, ranging or breaking out, deploy the strategy built for that state, and stand down when the state is unclear. The metal has spent fifty years teaching that no single style survives every era. The method that survives is the one that reads first and acts second.
Frequently asked questions
What is a market regime?
A persistent set of market conditions — trending, ranging, or transitional — during which particular strategies reliably outperform. Regimes can last months or decades.
Can regimes be detected in real time?
Statistically, yes — through volatility structure, correlation behaviour and the persistence of directional moves. Detection is probabilistic, which is why unclear readings should reduce activity rather than force it.
Does gold always hedge equities?
No. The correlation varies by regime — strongly negative in some crises, positive in liquidation events when everything is sold for cash. 2008 showed both within months.