          
          
          
                         WAYS OF INVESTING IN GOLD
          
          
               Investing in gold is exciting because of the
          unusually large number of ways you can purchase gold in
          today's market. 
          
               You can invest in physical gold by buying gold
          bullion bars, coins or medallions -- some of which sell
          for less than $25.  Or you might want to use your
          credit card to buy a bank's gold certificate that
          represents your ownership of gold and is redeemable on
          sight.  Or you can start a gold accumulation program
          for as little as $100.  If you feel more at home with
          stocks, you might want to consider shares in companies
          that mine gold.  There are also mutual funds, and more
          speculative gold futures contracts and options --- and
          many more.
          
          
          Your very own gold bar!
          
               Many investors prefer to take physical possession
          of their gold in order to have tangible control of
          their asset.  Pride of ownership moves other investors
          to have their gold within reach so that they may
          display it to friends or admire it in the comfort of
          home.
          
               If you like the idea of taking physical possession
          of gold you may want to buy the metal in the form of
          gold bars or privately minted coin-like medallions.
          
               The standard unit of gold in international trading
          is still the 400 troy ounce (12.5 kilogram) bar with a
          fineness of 995, referred to as a "London Good Delivery
          Bar".  One troy ounce is equal to 1.09714 regular
          ounces.  The purest gold of 999.9 fineness is used in
          the making of smaller bars.
          
               Gold bullion bars are available in at least 19
          sizes and weights ranging from a tiny one-gram bar and
          pocket-sized kilobar (32.15 troy ounces) to the large
          400 troy ounce London Good Delivery Bar. This variety
          offers a wide spread in gold bar prices  -- running
          from under $20 to $140,000 -- providing opportunities
          for even the smallest investor.
          
               In addition to the advantages connected with
          having gold under your own control, there are several
          other reasons favoring investment in gold bullion bars. 
          For example, commissions on the buying and selling of
          bullion bars are minimal.  You will find it easy to
          sell gold bullion bars bearing the names of reputable
          refiners.  And prices are quoted throughout the world.
          
               Gold bullion may be purchased from precious metals
          dealers, precious metals exchange companies, major
          banks and many brokerage firms.
          
          
          Gold Coins - The Universal Treasure
          
               Gold coins have fascinated the world's investors
          for over two thousand years.  
          
               Many ancient gold coins are both rare antiquities
          and miniature works of art.  They are bought and sold
          as individual items within the coin collecting
          (numismatic) community at prices well above the value
          of their gold content.
          
               There are also many modern gold legal tender coins
          that are frequently very beautiful and are issued in
          limited quantities to commemorate events or persons of
          national importance.
          
          
          Gold Bullion Coins are the "Gold Coins" of the
          investing public
          
               Although many numismatic gold coins have been
          purchased by investors, most investors think of gold
          bullion coins when they think of investing in "gold
          coins".  And bullion coins are favored by many
          investors who want physical possession of their gold.
          
               The popularity of these coins and privately minted
          coin-like medallions can be attributed to their small
          size, convenient weights, and easiness to store.
          
               The "typical" gold bullion coin is legal tender of
          a nation and its gold content is guaranteed by the
          issuing nation.  It bears a face value that is largely
          symbolic because its market value depends totally on
          its gold content.
          
               If you invest in gold bullion coins, or in
          privately issued coin-like gold medallions, pieces, or
          "rounds", it will be easy for you to keep track of the
          daily value of your holdings because many of the most
          popular gold bullion coins and medallions contain one
          troy ounce of pure gold.  And the price of one ounce of
          gold is reported daily in most newspapers.
          
               Other bullion coins have been minted in easy
          fractional weights such as 1/2-ounce, 1/4-ounce, and
          1/10-ounce.  Among the countries issuing bullion coins
          are South Africa, Canada, Mexico, China, Great Britain,
          and the United States.
          
               Bullion coins normally sell for a 3 to 15% premium
          over the bullion value of gold, but a large part of
          this premium may be recovered at resale.  The premium
          of gold coins is justified by their ready divisibility,
          convenience, portability and marketability.
          
               Bullion coins and privately minted gold medallions
          can be purchased at selected banks, precious metals
          dealers and brokerage firms.  You can also buy them at
          coin dealers and jewelers. Smaller bullion coins are
          becoming increasingly popular as investment jewelry.
          
          
          Buying through a broker/dealer
          
               One of the best sources for gold coins and bullion
          is a broker/dealer founded in 1982 by two of the former
          senior officers of Deak-Perera, at the time the
          nation's oldest and largest precious metals and foreign
          exchange firm.  International Financial Consultants
          Inc., Suite 400A, 1700 Rockville Pike, Rockville MD
          20852 are not "coin dealers," meaning that they don't
          take positions in the precious metals therefore
          creating a bias to sell certain items.  Instead,
          through their domestic and international network of
          wholesalers they buy and sell at competitive prices.  
          
               Clients and friends of the firm receive their
          monthly newsletter, Information Line, free of charge. 
          The publication will keep you up-to-date on the
          precious metals and foreign exchange markets.
          
               They are well known in the financial newsletter
          industry and at one time or another have been
          recognized as a "recommended vendor" by many of the
          writers in the newsletter industry.  The principals,
          Michael Checkan and Glen Kirsch have been in the
          precious metals/foreign exchange business for a
          combined total of 50 years.
          
               
          If You Don't Want Physical Possession of Your Gold...
          
               If, as an investor, you value convenience and
          speed over physical ownership of gold, you may prefer
          to invest in gold certificates, accumulation plans,
          futures contracts, options,gold mining shares, or gold
          funds.
          
          Gold Certificates Are Easy to Buy and Sell
          
               A gold certificate provides you with an attractive
          alternative to investing in physical metal. 
          
               Issued by many banks, gold certificates obligate
          the issuer to deliver a stated quantity and fineness of
          gold to the buyer in accordance with the issuer's terms
          and conditions.
          
               With a gold certificate, the investor's exposure
          to gold is identical to bullion, but has the added
          advantage of providing convenient storage.  Since many
          financial institutions issue certificates in fractional
          amounts, you have the opportunity to invest in
          convenient dollar amounts.
          
               Certificates are also easy to buy and sell.  Some
          major banks will even accept your credit card purchases
          by telephone.  By buying a certificate, you receive
          certain other benefits. You don't pay any fabrication
          charges.  There are no delivery charges.  While your
          bullion is on deposit, insurance coverage will be
          maintained.  You don't have to ship the bullion back
          when resale is desired.
          
               Your bullion position and the approximate current
          value will appear on your regular statements so that
          you will always know what you own.  And since your
          certificate is an obligation of the issuing institution
          to deliver gold, you may exchange your certificate for
          the underlying gold at any time, or sell the
          certificate through the issuing institution.
               
          
          Gold Accumulation Plans -- Economical Way of Enjoying
          Ownership
          
               The gold accumulation programs offered by many
          precious metals brokerage firms allow the investor to
          enjoy all the benefits of investing in gold without the
          responsibilities and costs of handling and storage.
          
               With accumulation programs, you sometimes need as
          little as $100 to be able to start buying gold.  And
          once you have opened your account with a reputable
          brokerage, you can add to your investment in amounts as
          small as $50 or as large as $5,000.
          
               Buying gold through accumulation programs can
          provide you with a number of advantages.  You can make
          purchases at any time.  Your order will be combined
          with other orders received that same day, and will be
          executed the next business day.  Since your brokerage
          house or bank buys and sells in the wholesale bullion
          dealer market, you are assured of competitive prices.  
          
               Because you are investing by the dollar amount and
          not by the ounce, your purchases are made in whole or
          partial ounces.  And you pay discounted commission
          rates that are up to 40% less than a regular broker
          charges on transactions.
          
               Your gold is stored in major depositories and is
          fully insured.  Your record keeping is done for you,
          and you will receive a confirmation of each transaction
          and a periodic summary statement.  While you leave your
          gold in an accumulation program, you do not have to pay
          state or local taxes.
          
               You can liquidate your accumulation plan holdings
          at any time.  And when you do decide to sell, you will
          avoid paying costly assaying fees for weight and purity
          testing.
          
               In a separate section we discuss GoldPlan, a Swiss
          gold accumulation program which combines these
          advantages with traditional Swiss secrecy.
          
          
          Gold Futures Contracts and Gold Options
          
               Gold futures contracts were originally designed to
          help industrial users to protect themselves from
          adverse fluctuations in the price of gold.
          
               Like futures contracts for other commodities, when
          you buy a gold futures contract you promise to purchase
          or sell a specified quantity and grade of gold on a
          given date for a certain price.
          
               In the case of options, you do not promise to buy,
          but you do have the right to buy gold at a fixed price
          on some future date.
          
               Through expert use of "leverage" -- the difference
          between the margin (capital invested) and value of the
          assets controlled by the contract -- profit potential
          can be very high.
          
               However, the risks are just as high, or higher for
          those who are not schooled in the intricacies of
          options and futures contracts.  You should discuss
          futures contracts and options with a trusted,
          experienced broker before investing in these, the most
          speculative ways of participating in the gold market.
          
          
          
