Two things are always discussed in Finnish everyday life regarding their prices. The first is a milk carton. The second is a gas pump.
Milk has been a staple on Finnish dining tables from generation to generation. Grandparents remember when it was fetched in loose containers. Later came the carton, then low-fat milk, and most recently lactose-free milk. The product has changed, but the need has remained almost the same. Milk is one of the few purchases that nearly every Finnish household makes week after week, regardless of wealth or life situation.
Gasoline, on the other hand, has been the backbone of Finnish mobility since the first cars appeared on the roads. And the gas station is the place where changes in the economic situation are felt most concretely. The rise in gasoline prices is immediately visible and felt. Finns have filled their cars through recessions, oil crises, and wartime.
That is precisely why these two products are excellent indicators when comparing their prices to gold. The products tell what can actually be obtained with gold.
What does the purchasing power of gold mean?
Purchasing power simply means how much can be acquired with a certain amount of money. When we talk about the purchasing power of gold, the question is, how many ordinary consumer products can be obtained with one gram of gold?
The answer reveals something that a simple gold price chart does not show. Gold has not only increased in value, but its value has risen in relation to almost everything else. Today, one gram of gold buys more gasoline and more milk than ever in the history of the 21st century.
This is gold's key feature as a store of wealth. It does not produce dividends or rent. But it preserves, and often increases, its realistic purchasing power over time.
The relationship of gold to gasoline - fuel test
The price of gasoline has always been a sensitive topic for Finns. When its price rises, it immediately becomes a hot topic in the tabloids.
GRAPH OF GASOLINE PRICE VS GOLD
In 2000, one gram of gold could buy about ten liters of gasoline. That was enough for an average family's weekend use. By 2020, the same gram bought nearly 43 liters of gasoline, despite the fact that the price of gasoline had risen by then. The pandemic year 2020 is clearly visible in the data. When movement nearly came to a halt, the price of gasoline fell due to the collapse in demand. At the same time, gold's purchasing power in relation to fuel temporarily jumped to even 50 liters.
The year 2022 tells a different story again. Russia's invasion of Ukraine raised the average price of gasoline to over two euros per liter, which was more than ever before in Finnish measurement history. Gold's purchasing power temporarily decreased in relation to fuel at that time, even though the price of gold remained high. Currently, one gram of gold buys over 50 liters of gasoline, which is many times more than in 2000.
The comparison of the price of gold to the price of gasoline also shows something else. Gold and gasoline react to the same crises in different ways. The price of gasoline rises when more oil is needed or supply decreases. The price of gold rises when people seek safety from uncertainty, which is often when the price of gasoline is high.
The relationship of gold to milk - a daily comparison
Milk is a significantly more stable consumer product for comparison. Its price does not fluctuate with the oil markets, nor does it react to geopolitics as sensitively as gasoline. It follows the general development of living costs calmly, slowly, and almost imperceptibly.
GRAPH OF MILK PRICE VS GOLD
In 2000, the price of a liter of milk was about 65 cents. With one gram of gold, you could get about 14 liters of milk. The next two decades were exceptionally stable in terms of milk prices, as the price per liter rose steadily, remaining for a long time below one euro. In 2020, a liter of milk could still be obtained for under one euro.
Then in 2022, a change occurred. The energy crisis and the war in Ukraine raised costs across the entire food chain, and the price of milk climbed to the level of 1.20–1.50 euros. Many Finns noticed at the checkout that milk, the most ordinary purchase, suddenly became expensive. The purchasing power of gold against milk temporarily decreased, but still remained clearly at a higher level than at the beginning of the millennium.
Today, one gram of gold can buy about 65 liters of milk. In 2000, the same gram would have bought 14 liters of milk. The purchasing power of gold against milk has thus more than quadrupled.
Why is the purchasing power of gold increasing?
The underlying phenomenon is a fundamental one. Money loses its value over time, gold does not.
Central banks print money, governments take on debt, and the amount of euros in circulation increases year by year. This means that each individual euro will buy less in the future. This is called inflation. Gasoline and milk are becoming more expensive because the money used to purchase goods is less valuable.
Gold, on the other hand, cannot be printed more. Its production is slow, mining is expensive, and new significant deposits are found less and less frequently. The amount of gold in the world increases by only about one percent each year, which is clearly less than the percentage increase in money.
This imbalance is at the core of the increase in gold's purchasing power. As the value of money weakens relative to goods, the scarcity of gold makes it even more valuable. Thus, the purchasing power of a gram of gold increases relative to gasoline and milk. Slowly, but consistently.
Purchasing power does not grow evenly
It is important to say out loud that gold's purchasing power does not grow linearly. The price of gold can decline for several years. Between 2013 and 2015, the price of gold fell significantly from its peak in 2011, and its purchasing power compared to gasoline and milk even weakened.
This is normal. Gold is a long-term store of value, not a short-term investment. If the observation period is a few years, the price of gold may be declining. If the observation is made over a decade or even longer, the trend has been clear.
From 2000 to 2025, the price of gold has increased more than tenfold. Gasoline has roughly doubled, and milk has increased slightly more than double. The purchasing power of gold relative to both has increased significantly.
What does this mean in practice?
The growth of gold's purchasing power is not an abstract theory. It means that a person who bought grams of gold in 2000 is today clearly in a better position, in relation to everyday costs, than a person who has kept the same amount in cash or in a low-interest account.
Cash 8.80 euros from the year 2000 is still 8.80 euros. With that, you can buy about four liters of gasoline and a few cartons of milk today. A gram of gold, on the other hand, is about 100 euros today, and with that, you can get over 50 liters of gasoline or over 60 liters of milk.
Stocks, real estate, and other assets may perform better in the short term, but gold does one thing exceptionally well, as it maintains its realistic purchasing power
in the long term in situations where money does not. Gold is therefore not a miracle cure, nor the only sensible investment option.
The gas pump and the milk shelf tell it more clearly than any chart. The more you have to pay for consumer products, the more you get from a gram of gold.
