Gold is a highly sought-after precious metal which, for many centuries, has been used as money, a store of value and in jewellery. The metal occurs as nuggets or grains in rocks, underground "veins" and in alluvial deposits.

Gold forms the basis for a monetary standard used by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). Modern industrial uses include dentistry and electronics, where gold has traditionally found use because of its good resistance to oxidative corrosion. Native gold contains usually eight to ten percent silver, but often much more - alloys with silver content over 20% are called electrum. As the amount of silver increases, the colour becomes whiter and the specific gravity becomes lower.

In 2005, domestic mine production of gold fell to 256,000 kilograms (kg), slightly down compared with that of 2004. The reduction was a result of closure of one mine in Washington and lower output from older mines. The recent price increases have spurred exploration and development of new gold projects. However, since new mines take years to open, there was a lag in new mines to open to replace older mines.

Stronger global gold prices offset the reduction in gold production, resulting in an increase in gold value for 2005 by eight percent compared with that of 2004.

The United States remained the world’s third ranked gold producer, behind South Africa and Australia. Nevada accounted for almost 83% of domestic production in 2005. The remaining output came from Utah, Alaska, Colorado, Montana, Washington, South Dakota, California, New Mexico, Arizona, and Idaho, in descending order.