Physical gold 'preferred' for long-term investments

Commerzbank analyst Eugen Weinberg has suggested today (January 26th) that a range of macro-economic factors are leading investors to buy gold, Reuters reports.

The dollar - which generally tends to move in the opposite direction to the price of the yellow metal - reached a six-week high today as fears over the banking sector persist.

However, Mr. Weinberg, from Germany's second-largest bank, has explained that more serious factors are overriding the greenback at present and leading a surge in gold investment.

He told the news provider: "In times of economic crisis, falling equity markets and mounting aversion to risk, physical gold is preferred as the safest form of investment."

The type of factors influencing investors were also outlined recently by Nicholas Brooks, head of research for London-based firm ETF Securities, who explained that people see a number of good reasons for investing in gold at present.

"Most of the flows we are seeing are going into our physically backed products, which is a pretty clear indication that people are buying because they are concerned about counterparty risk, the financial system and the outlook for currencies," he told Reuters.

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