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		</div><p>Demand for gold rocketed in the first half of the year as investors sought sanctuary in the safe haven asset in the face of a &#8220;potent combination&#8221; of Brexit, the US election and negative interest rates.</p>
<p>Figures from the World Gold Council show that investment demand soared 127% in the six months to the end of June compared to the same period in 2015, the second highest half-year on record.</p>
<p>Appetite for the precious metal was 16% higher than during the financial crisis, and Alistair Hewitt, head of market intelligence at the World Gold Council, told the Press Association: &#8220;When a stress event hits, gold typically performs well and investors see its safe haven value.</p>
<p>&#8220;Negative interest rates are the primary concern for investors, and Brexit and the US election have also played their part in driving demand.&#8221;</p>
<p>Exchange traded funds were the main drivers of investment in gold over the half. The price of gold also continued to climb, rising 25%, its best first half performance since 1980.</p>
<p>The Gold Council&#8217;s latest report comes a week after the Bank of England cut interest rates for the first time in more than seven years, to 0.25% from 0.5%.</p>
<p>It said: &#8220;Investment was the largest component of gold demand for two consecutive quarters &#8211; the first time this has ever happened.</p>
<p>&#8220;Negative interest rate policies in Japan and Europe, combined with expectations of a slowdown in the cycle of US rate hikes, underpinned investors&#8217; gold-positive sentiment.</p>
<p>&#8220;The US election, the UK referendum on EU membership and possible implications of the Brexit outcome, the increasingly parlous state of Italy&#8217;s banking sector; these have proved a potent combination as far as gold investors are concerned.&#8221;</p>
<p>The Council&#8217;s report showed that overall global gold demand in the second quarter was up 15% to 1,050.2 tonnes.</p>
<p>Mr Hewitt added that in Britain, a combination of ultra-low interest rates, poor returns on savings, the plunge in sterling and Brexit would continue to drive domestic demand.</p>
<p>&#8220;The current looser monetary policy phase will continue for many years to come, and the implications of Brexit will play out for a long time.</p>
<p>&#8220;There&#8217;s not much certainty about &#8211; and this will continue to support demand for gold.&#8221;</p>
<p>In June, the Royal Mint also said that demand for gold had rocketed, with transactions on the Mint&#8217;s trading platform soaring 32% in the month.</p>
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