Gold prices rise above $2,500 per ounce for first time in history

Gold prices reached a new historical high, exceeding $2,500 per ounce. This happened due to investor demand for safe haven assets.

According to MarketWatch, gold futures quotes on the Comex exchange increased by 1% and are trading at $2,506.2 per troy ounce.

As Chris Weston, head of research at Pepperstone, said, demand for gold was driven by rising tensions in the Middle East. According to him, the escalation in the region has made gold the most popular asset for hedging risks.

In addition to this, he noted, another factor that could have caused demand for the metal was a reduction in duties on gold imports to India.