AN EMPIRICAL STATISTICAL INVESTIGATION OF FOMO IN GOLD MARKETS: BEHAVIORAL DRIVERS AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC CONSEQUENCES IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES CONTEXT

Abstract

This study examines how the Fear of Missing Out impacts the individual investment financial decisions and behavior particularly in the gold market, with specific emphasis on Pakistan as case study. The study examines the role of social influence, media and social networking on impulsive attitude towards gold investment. This study took support from historical gold price data for five years (2020-2025) (World Gold council and State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) along with survey conducted from 300 retails gold investors across major regional markets.

Results: Results shows a significant link between gold prices volatility and high FoMO level among investors. According to results, Over 70% of survey respondents reportedly invested in gold due to FoMO gains, mostly influenced by trends and exaggerated reports on social media or recommendation by social networks. Such impulsive behavior in investments heavily impacts personal savings and brings financial stress at the cost of household resources. The study emphasizes on the broader socio-economic results of FoMO based investment decisions and highlights the need of financial literacy in education and proves the importance of responsible information sharing mechanism to guide investors towards well-informed investment and financial decisions