Gold tops $1,200 for first time since June as demand rises

New York/Melbourne: Gold surged above $1,200 an ounce for the first time since June, extending a rally that’s made the metal the best performing commodity this year, as a global share rout spurs haven demand.

Bullion for immediate delivery gained as much as 0.4% to $1,193.53, and traded at $1,191.02 at 8:16am in Singapore, according to Bloomberg generic pricing. On Monday, the metal jumped to $1,200.97, the highest since 22 June, as producers’ shares rallied.

Gold has advanced 12% this year on rising concern that the global economy is losing steam, with global equity markets in retreat and investors cutting bets on higher US interest rates. Shares in Asia fell on Tuesday following a drop in US equities that pushed the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index to a 22-month closing low.

“Gold’s on the move,” Phil Streible, a senior market strategist at RJO Futures in Chicago, said in a telephone interview. “A sharp selloff in equities is further causing a flight to quality.”

An index of Australian-listed gold producers rose as much as 6% on Tuesday to the highest since May 2013 as Newcrest Mining Ltd. took its advance this year to 27%.

The global slowdown has increased speculation that US growth will cool enough to force Federal Reserve policy makers to wait longer before raising rates again. The prospect of delays has sent the dollar lower and gave metals a boost as alternative investments. Bullion holdings in exchange-traded products have climbed for 15 consecutive days, the longest run since September 2012, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Since the start of the year, investors added $2.6 billion to US exchange-traded funds linked to precious metals, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That follows a withdrawal of $2.7 billion in 2015, when bullion posted a third annual loss.

Newcrest Mining Ltd., Australia’s biggest producer, jumped as much as 6.5% in Sydney Tuesday, as Perth-based Northern Star Resources Ltd. advanced 8.6%. Shares of Newmont Mining Corp. rose 3.2% to $25.19 on Monday for a fourth increase.

“Newmont, I think, in particular benefits from being in really good shape and having the gold price tailwind help it out,” Christopher LaFemina, an analyst at Jefferies LLC, said by telephone from New York. “‘Newmont stands out to me as being relatively cheap, good free-cash flow, relatively low operational risk and a good, strong balance sheet.” Bloomberg