-SPDR assets rise to highest in nearly a year

LONDON: Gold rose on Thursday as volatility in other markets stoked “safe haven” buying, including of bullion funds.

Spot gold was up 0.5 percent at $1,234.41 an ounce by 1454 GMT, heading for a third straight day of gains.

“Gold has put in a very good performance and the fact that we are seeing higher lows and higher highs points to a bullish scenario,” MKS head of trading Afshin Nabavi said.

“Overall buying is safe-haven related ... if we can stabilise around $1,250, a broader range of investors will come in,” he added.

Gold has regained its role as a shelter for risk-averse investors, rising 16 percent this year as global equities have tumbled and fears of an economic slowdown increased. It hit a one-year high of $1,260.60 this month, further supported by the repricing of expectations for US interest rate rises.

“The technical picture seems a bit changed and at the same time we don’t expect rate hikes from the Fed anymore ... we expect gold to reach $1,300 by the end of the year,” ABN Amro analyst Georgette Boele said.

European shares rebounded on Thursday but lower oil prices and falling Chinese shares rekindled anxiety about the impact of high market volatility on the global economy.

An increase in the holdings of bullion-backed exchange-traded funds (ETF) has also supported the rally.

Inflows into SPDR Gold Trust, the top gold ETF, this year have already surpassed outflows for the whole of 2015. On Wednesday its holdings rose to 760.32 tonnes, the highest since March 2015.

“The ETFs are a good indicator that money is definitely flowing into gold,” one Hong Kong-based bullion trader said.

Gold could gain more because it is on the cusp of a key technical level known as the “golden cross”, when the 50-day moving average surpasses the 200-day moving average, analysts said. The gap was less than 50 cents on Thursday.

If the golden cross occurs, it would be the first such formation in almost two years and would be a buy signal for technical traders and momentum-driven investors.

Among other precious metals, silver eased 0.9 percent to $15.08 an ounce, platinum dipped 1 percent to $931.55 and palladium rose 0.2 percent to $487.20.—Reuters