Johannesburg -Gold futures edged closer toward $1 800 an ounce – a level last seen at the end of 2011 – as demand for haven assets surged amid concerns over rising coronavirus infections.
Bullion will be heading for its best quarter since 2016 as deaths surpassed 500 000 worldwide and confirmed cases have gone over 10 million, according to data byte John Hopkins University.
The increasing numbers are a sad reminder that the deadliest pandemic of the modern era is stronger than ever.
Gold has rallied 17%% this year as governments and central banks implemented stimulus measured to aid economies battered by the pandemic. Investors are also turning to gold as a store of wealth, and banks including Goldman Sachs now forecast it will hit a record $2 000 an ounce in 12 months.
“Gold is benefiting from the growing concern that the Covid-19 has been badly underestimated,” said Gavin Wendt, senior resource analyst at MineLife Pty.
“Gold is also benefiting from the trillions of dollars of stimulus that is being fed into the economy by the central banks and the likelihood of negative real interest rates in the US. It’s a double-whammy that’s enormously supportive for gold prices that will likely push them to record highs,” said Wendt.
