As Russia invaded Ukraine, gold prices skyrocketed to their highest level in more than a year.
In India, the gold price today surged by ₹1,400 , hitting the peak of ₹51,750 per 10 gms in the early morning trade.
This comes amid steep fall in the stock market with Sensex down by 1432.50 points and Nifty reporting a slump of 410.70 points at the time of opening. Several Asian stock markets also plunged in the aftermath of the Russian invasion.
The bullion has witnessed a spike amid the increasing standoff between Russia and the West. Economic experts say gold is now being historically seen as a hedge against major economic and geopolitical ructions.
Spot gold jumped as much as 2.1% to $1,949.03 an ounce, the highest level since January 2021, and traded at $1,939.55 at 1:08 p.m. in Singapore, news website Bloomberg reported.
“Big flight to safety happening in markets right now and the only true safe haven appears to be gold, with crypto markets tumbling,”
Bloomberg quoted John Feeney, business development manager at Sydney-based bullion dealer Guardian Gold Australia, referring to the Bitcoin slump at a month low after Putin launched a military operation in the neighbouring country. The largest token fell as much as 7.4% to $34,783 after an initial Tass report.
Earlier in the day, Russian president Vladimir Putin announced a military operation in Ukraine, calling it a move to ensure ‘demilitarisation and denazification’ of the eastern European nation.
There have been reports of military command centres being hit by missiles in Ukraine’s capital Kyiv and Kharkiv. The United Nations Security Council convened.
An emergency meeting over the simmering tensions in Europe, with the global peace body’s chief Antonio Guterres appealing to Putin to stop the war in the name of humanity. US president Joe Biden on the other hand, condemned Putin’s move warning him of catastrophic loss of life.