Commodity Online
NEW YORK: After bird flu and recession, a new epidemic has come to lift the Gold prices across the globe. Swine flu, which has hit several countries like US, Mexico and the European Union, has given one more reason for the gold to regain its safe haven status back after a slump in the recent past.

Even as news spread about the virus reaching several countries and many nations advising people not to travel to the affected countries, gold prices jumped as prospects of investors flocking to the yellow metal rose.

Gold climbed to its highest in almost a month on Monday. Adding to that jump was the Akshaya Tritiya festival in India, an auspicious occasion for people to buy gold.

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Fears of a global swine flu pandemic grew with new infections in the US and Canada on Monday, while millions of Mexicans have stayed indoors to avoid a virus that has killed more than 100 people.

Gold hit an intra-day high of $918.25 an ounce, its highest since April 2. The price had been boosted on Friday by the revelation that China had secretly raised its Gold reserves by 75pc since 2003, confirming years of speculation that it had been buying.

Gold, which has registered four straight sessions of gains, has risen by 5pc over the past week and is just 8pc below an 11-month high above $1,000 hit in February.

Analysts said world is not sure how the swine flu will play out. The problem is the potential for this to explode to pandemic proportions, leaving a lot of people very wary. It may well benefit gold, as gold would be seen as a safe haven.

Dealers expected gold to face resistance around $932 – an intra-day high seen in early April.

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