Vladimir Putin is doing his part to keep the upswing in gold alive.
Since the Russian president went on a geopolitical offensive in Ukraine in 2014, the haven asset had its first annual gain in four years in 2016 and is on track for another in 2017.
A beneficiary of economic and political perils from North Korea to Brexit, it's among the top-performing commodities this year.
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In the second quarter alone, it accounted for 38 percent of all gold purchased by central banks. The gold rush is allowing the Bank of Russia to continue growing its reserves while abstaining from purchases of foreign currency for more than two years. It's one of a handful of central banks to keep the faith as global demand for the precious metal fell to a two-year low in the second quarter. But what may matter most is that gold is as geopolitics-proof an investment as any in the age of sanctions and a deepening rift with the US.
"Gold is an asset that is independent of any government and, in effect, given what is usually held in reserves, by any Western government," said Matthew Turner, metals analyst at Macquarie Group in London. "This might appeal given Russia has faced financial sanctions." ...
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