Gold increasing foreign exchange, the world's gold reserves and their trading market have become a small fraction of all markets and fixed exchange rates of currencies to gold have been replaced by floating prices for gold and gold future contract. Though the gold stock grows by only 1 or 2% per year, very little metal is irretrievably consumed. Inventory above ground would satisfy many decades of industrial and even artisan uses at current prices. The gold proportion (fineness) of alloys is measured by karat (k). Pure gold (commercially termed "fine" gold) is designated as 24 karat, abbreviated 24k. English gold coins
Carat (mass) different locations. In terms of diamonds, a paragon is a flawless stone of at least 100 carats (20 g). The ANSI X.12 EDI standard abbreviation for the carat is CD. First attested in English in the mid-15th century, the word "carat" comes from Italian "carato", which comes from Arabic "qīrāṭ" قيراط, in turn borrowed from Greek "kerátion" κεράτιον 'carob seed', a diminutive of "keras" 'horn'. It was a unit of weight, though unlikely to have been used to measure gold in classical times. Carob seeds have been used throughout history to measure jewelry, because it was believed that there was