Britons now find gold tangible investment in crunch times

Sun, Jul 20 02:30 PM

London, July 20 (IANS) If Britons still have some money left after the credit crunch, they are investing it in the good old yellow metal - just like Indians. Gold has replaced the traditional British investments like property, stocks, shares and expensive cars.

Last year saw an 81 percent increase in UK investment in gold coins, taking the amount bought to 4.5 tonnes. Bullion traders see the demand going up this year too.

Factors which once deterred Britons from buying gold - such bullion not paying interest - are no longer putting savers off.

Leading gold bullion suppliers BullionVault, ATS Bullion and Baird Co have all revealed record levels of investment in gold bars, and the World Gold Council (WGC) has reported a big increase in the number of gold coins being bought.

Traditionally, in Indian and Asian markets, gold jewellery and coins have often been traded, while in France and Italy the trade in ingots - small pieces of gold - has previously been much stronger than in the UK.

But this is changing. 'We have seen a rising level of interest in gold as an investment in the UK,' said Matthew Graydon of the WGC. 'Retail investors have realised that gold offers an effective hedge against currency movements, is an effective inflation hedge, and is a proven safe haven in times of financial turbulence.'

With minimum outlays of around Pound1,000 at most bullion companies, tangible investments are looking increasingly attractive for middle-income savers.

David Walker, a gold investor, told The Independent: 'Some people thought it was an odd thing to invest in, but there is a great sense of actually owning something... If you put your money in pension funds, it could lose money, if you give it to a fund manager, they might lose it, but having it in gold makes you sleep a lot better at night.'

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