International Gold Market, Stock Market and Business Cycles: the Central and Eastern European Countries

During the economic recession periods, gold investments seem to become very important because gold is considered a means to preserve the investment value. Gold has also maintained this feature during the financial and economic crisis that occurred at the end of the year 2007. Although the inflation rate has recorded significant increases, the investment in gold has kept its value because the price of gold has increased. After the beginning of the financial and economic crisis the price of gold has also recorded a significant increase in volatility. The aims of this study focus on the comparative analysis of the gold price cycles and the stock market cycles in the Central and East Europe as well as the determination of the return of gold investment on the return and risk of stock markets in these countries. The results obtained confirm that both the return and the risk in some of the stock markets under analysis are influenced by the return of gold investment.