Bitcoin have symbolic value of what people are willing to pay for it. I don't think it's reasonable to measure its 'intrinsic value' in any way, even though I guess it's possible to do that by taking into account the average cost of mining (electricity bills, maintenance, human workforce) per coin, but it's not giving anything helpful, and even produce doesn't have its value counted this way (goods usually cost significantly more than it's worth to make them and, in some cases where state regulation of prices is done, they can cost less). So the demand defines the price, but the demand is heavily affected by sentiments of people (FOMO or FUD).
produce actually does have a cost and underlying value below the market price.... but you have to separate the VALUE vs the price
lets call VALUE=whole sale COST. and lets call PRICE=COST+profit (profit= speculative volatility above value)
now take 2 lines
/\
PRICE__/\/ \/\
\/\/\__ _______value_____------value is below price. but you never see the value on a market price ticket. .. its hidden..
value moves up slowly and incrementally below the volatile and speculative price.
the PRICE is above the value. but the PRICE can move up and down depending on many factors. but if a business is actually money savvi will never sell at a loss.. because thats just bad business
but thats if you can understand the difference between the hidden underlying value vs the speculative price
EG say a dairy farm can milk a cow for a gallon of milk for $0.72.
its not going to sell that milk for less then $0.72
so it sells milk in bulk at say $1.15cents to a pasteurising factory(60% profit)
pasteurising factory gets a gallon of milk for $1.15cent. plus 6cent delivery to its factory
it then has 20cent cost to heat it and then bottle it ($1.41cents)
its not going to sell that milk for less then $1.41cents
so it sells milk in bulk at say $2.25cents to a supermarket(60% profit)
so the supermarket sells milk at say $3.60cents to a customer(60% profit)
you may not realise that the supermarket had a value/cost and the factory and the farm had a value/cost hidden away .. but they do.. all businesses know this and understand this. .. i know you only see the retail price of milk and think thats VALUE.. but no thats market PRICE
the value of milk to a farmer is bottomline $0.72cent-$1.15
the value of milk to a factory is bottomline $1.41cent-$2.25
the value of milk to a market is bottomline $2.25cent-$3.60
yes someone living near a farm can avoid the super MARKET PRICE and acquire milk UN-pasteurised from the farmer for $1.15
but its unpasteurised so its features and benefits may not be worth the discount(bacteria milk, yuck). so it might be able to slip $2.25 to a factory employee and thus get pasteurised milk cheaper than supermarket PRICES
so in that scenario that lucky person values milk at $2.25 because thats the cheapest he can get what he wants.
(much like some whales can get BTC at whole sale O-T-C prices(below market PRICE rate))
the base line value where no one on the planet can get milk anywhere on the planet cheaper than $0.72 is where milks very bottomline value of $0.72
but no one will want to go start a farm to get milk for $0.72 as there is alot of work and effort for bacteria milk
people would prefer to set up a factory for minimum $1.41 cost. or if still more work, buy for convenience cost of $2.25-$3.60 depending on access, meaning majority of the community value milk between $1.41-$3.60
where by the price they pay is somewhere in that range dependant on access, convenience
there are places on the planet where it costs a farmer over $3.60 a gallon.. but that farmer doesnt farm. he just buys milk cheaper.
..
there is alot more happening in regards to "produce value" then just the supermarket PRICE you see
do you really think that the accountants/ financial department of a supermarket just has a hat full of random numbers from $0 to $3.60 and just picks a number at random.. truth is they know the minimum number.. and it sure as hell isnt $0
with bitcoin the cheapest and most expensive mining cost is ~$33k-$78k at todays hashrate
the price sits somewhere inbetween depending on many factors
EG because it costs $78k to mine in places like bermuda, japan, germany (high electric cost) they are not mining right now. they prefer to buy
EG because it costs $44k to mine at home(residential electric cost) in america they are not mining right now. they prefer to buy
EG mining in kazahkstan is $33k so they are happy to be a mining farm and sell for profit.
bitcoins bottomline value is $33k not $0
milks bottomline value is ~$1.41 not $0
