World Gold Council reports 80% year-on-year rise in first-quarter investment demand

Global investment demand for gold soared in the first quarter as the COVID-19 pandemic fueled safe-haven demand for the precious metal, the World Gold Council said in a report released Thursday. Total gold investment demand, which includes bars and coins and gold-backed exchange-traded fund investments, climbed by 80% year-on-year to a four-year high of 539.6 metric tons in the first quarter, the WGC said. That figure included inflows of 298 metric tons for gold-backed ETFs to record-high holdings of 3,185 metric tons for the quarter. Total global first-quarter gold demand was at 1,083.8 metric tons, up 1% from the same period last year. The front-month June gold futures contract GCM20, 0.84% settled at $1,713.40 an ounce on Wednesday, down 0.5% for the session, but traded more than 7% higher month to date.

Myra P. Saefong

Source:marketwatch.com