These days, with the price of gold skyrocketing in the market, gold also has attained new heights for the Korean-American community. In fact, one can say many Koreans in America are experiencing a sort of modern-day gold fever.

According to Korean tradition, when a baby is 100 days old, or one year old, friends of the parents and family members give the baby a gold ring as a form of blessing. Many Korean children have received such rings. But the custom is gradually fading; instead, many Korean families are selling the gold rings they have concealed at the bottom of their clothes chests.

Ms. Choi, 29, lives in Sunnyside, Queens. Recently a colleague at work celebrated her daughter’s first birthday. Ms. Choi considered whether to give the child a gold ring or a gift of cash. In the end, Ms. Choi decided to give the baby $100. Her reasoning was simple; at current gold prices, a 3.75 gram gold ring would cost between $120 and $130 and a gift of $100 is very respectable. She was not surprised that at the baby’s party, “most other friends gave gifts of cash or baby items instead of gold rings. I got the feeling,” she said, “that the parents even preferred the gifts of cash.”

Gold is not only being replaced at babies’ birthdays. These days, gifts of gold brought to weddings are disappearing and replaced by other gifts, such as fashion jewelry.

The nature of retail gold sales also seems to be changing. In a reversal, most Korean goldsmiths in New York now see customers coming in to sell their gold items. With gold prices at an all-time high, few customers are looking to buy. One salesperson at Kim’s Jewelry, on 47th St in Manhattan, noted, “Nowadays, there are almost no customers buying gold. Most people come in to sell their jewelry. Customers are trying to get rid of items such as children’s rings, bracelets, necklaces, and even bars of gold.”

Korean gold jewelry retailers are transforming their businesses and adjusting to reselling gold to wholesalers. Another shop owner in Manhattan said, “There are so many customers who want to sell their gold that we recently shifted from retail sales to gold imports. Now we only collect and resell gold items.”

Koreans are also increasingly investing in gold. This is a new development, but one which is rapidly catching on among those who can afford to invest. They hope to reap high interests on their investments. According to business reports, larger numbers of Korean investors are entering the gold market. These include well known and well-heeled Korean financial companies. A spokesperson for a Korean bank stated, “Given the current situation, with interest rates falling, and the dollar shrinking, money managers are turning to gold as one of the safest investment markets. Inquiries are growing daily.”

But experts in the gold market warn that gold has historically exhibited fluctuating prices. Gold might not be the perfectly safe investment many investors believe it to be. Gold investments should be balanced with alternative investments. A diversified portfolio is a better way to guard against the fluctuations in the stock market.