Germans pile into gold amid Greek eurozone default fears

14-May (Telegraph) — German investors have piled into gold bars and coins in the first quarter of the year as a hedge against European Central Bank policy and the threat of a Greek default bringing down the eurozone.

Latest figures from the World Gold Council show that Germans increased their buying of gold coins and bars of bullion by 20pc to 32.2 tonnes in the last quarter, the highest rate of purchases seen in a year.

The strong buying of gold – which is traditionally seen by investors as a safe-haven asset – was seen across Europe amid growing uncertainty over central bank policy and the standoff between Athens and its creditors.

“This was the strongest start in Europe for gold coins and bars that we have seen since 2011,” Alistair Hewitt, head of market intelligence at the World Gold Council told The Telegraph. “German investors are fretting over the ECB, Greece and Ukraine.”

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