UK investors have flocked to gold amid heightened volatility in global markets, according to data from The Royal Mint.
Following the dip in global financial markets on Monday (5 August), bullion trading via The Royal Mint’s website surged 336% compared with the daily average so far this year.
The number of investor transactions was up 53% on the average day, while one ounce gold Britannia coins, digital gold, sovereign coins and one kilogram gold bars were among the most popular products as gold prices dropped in Monday morning trading.
The Royal Mint also noted a 68% increase in first-time investors buying precious metals on Monday.
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The Royal Mint’s markets insights manager Stuart O’Reilly said: “As global financial markets plummeted in Monday’s trading, precious metals investors were split into two camps. On one side, traders were forced to reduce their holdings in gold and silver following recent market highs so that they could cover losses in global equity markets.
“At the same time, as precious metals prices dropped after this sell-off, UK retail investors viewed this as an opportunity to lock in lower prices while increasing their allocations to gold and silver.
“Clearly, many were opportunistically buying the dip as gold dropped below $2,370 per troy ounce after rallying to more than $2,470 the Friday before.”
Since Monday’s low of £1,856.71 per troy ounce, gold has rebounded slightly to £1,894.41 (as of 11am, 8 August).
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O’Reilly added: “As the home of precious metals investing, we often see how significant market events, such as Monday’s shock, impact sentiment to precious metals.
“From our experience, gold and precious metals investing grow in popularity during more challenging times for the global economy as investors look to diversify their portfolios and hedge against inflation.”
This story was written by our sister title, Portfolio Adviser
