The MetalCharts API is live. See plans
1 month free: no ads plus full access.

Palladium Price in 1972

In 1972, the price of palladium averaged $42 per troy ounce, up 13.5% from the year before. This page covers the 1972 average and what that palladium would be worth in today's dollars.

1972 Average

$42

Annual average, USD/oz

Change vs 1971

+13.5%

from $37 in 1971

Palladium Price Chart, 1970 to 1990

Annual average palladium price per troy ounce, 1970 to 1990, with 1972 marked.

What happened to the palladium price in 1972

Palladium averaged $42 per troy ounce in 1972, up 13.5% from $37 the year before.

In the 1970s palladium was still a minor precious metal used mainly in electronics and dentistry. It rode the decade's commodity booms and the 1979-80 precious-metals mania, but its defining demand driver, the automotive catalytic converter, was only just emerging.

Adjusted for inflation, palladium's 1972 average of $42 equals about $324 in today's dollars. The conversion uses US Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U annual averages, so treat it as a close approximation rather than an exact figure.

Frequently Asked Questions

What was the price of palladium in 1972?
Palladium averaged $42 per troy ounce in 1972, based on LBMA and USGS annual average data. That average was up 13.5% from $37 in 1971.
What is a 1972 palladium price worth in today's dollars?
Adjusted with the US Consumer Price Index, palladium's 1972 average of $42 works out to roughly $324 in today's dollars, using 2025 as the CPI base year. The conversion uses BLS CPI-U annual averages, so treat it as a close approximation rather than an exact figure.

Annual averages are USGS/Engelhard producer prices (1970 to 1988) and LBMA palladium prices (1989 to 2025) per troy ounce in US dollars. Where daily data exists, the per-year high, low, and close come from MetalCharts historical data. Inflation adjustments use BLS CPI-U annual averages.