>> Gold shoots up on the risk of recession? <<
Absolutely. Gold is a hedge. No matter of opinions varying; this is first-day-of-class Finance 101 stuff.
Finance 101? I doubt it. Finance 101 primarily covers macro-financial policies, not individual investing. From the Wharton course description for Finance 101: "The goal is to provide a unified framework for understanding macroeconomic events and policy, which govern the global economic environment of business. The course analyzes the determinants and behavior of employment, production, demand and profits; inflation, interest rates, asset prices, and wages; exchange rates and international flows of goods and assets; including the interaction of the real economy with monetary policy and the financial system."
In my experience and opinion, investing in physical gold is a fools game. Gold does not generate or provide income, dividends, or share splits; gold does not have intrinsic value; although gold is is used in the manufacturing of goods, there is no shortage of supply that drives the price. Rather, the price of gold as an investment is primarily driven by emotion - hype, fear, and uncertainty - which is part marketing strategy by the people who sell gold as an "investment."
Yes, I agree that gold is a hedge. But it is a hedge against inflation, not recession. Gold goes flat in a recession. Thanks for the condescending lesson, though.