By Kirsten Hastings
The resignation of Brexit secretary David Davis followed swiftly by foreign secretary Boris Johnson saw a 237% jump in people purchasing physical gold on Monday compared with an average day, investment firm The Pure Gold Company has said.
Enquiries throughout Monday evening into Tuesday morning increased by 312%, chief executive Josh Saul said.
“The atmosphere was reminiscent of the weeks before the Brexit referendum, and half of the same clients who purchased in the three days either side of the referendum in 2016 felt the UK is in store for a similar rollercoaster. In 2016, when the Brexit referendum was announced, sterling plummeted and gold increase by over 25% (overnight).”
At the time of Johnson’s resignation, sterling dipped below $1.32, while gold was up 1%.
“The general sentiment right now is confusion and uncertainty,” said Saul. “Many of our clients purchasing gold are worried that [prime minister] Theresa May could be ousted out of office and replaced with someone in support of a hard Brexit.
“The lack of support for May from within her own party threatens the perceived stability of the UK government and some feel this will strengthen [opposition leader] Jeremy Corbyn’s fight for power.”
Over the past three months, The Pure Gold Company said it has seen “a 193% increase in people removing exposure to their equities from within their pensions/Sipps” in order to purchase physical gold bars within the same vehicle.
“Many believe that the stock market has seen the longest bull run in history and with the long-term uncertainties that lie ahead, many of our clients prefer the safer option in gold,” said Saul.
The ability to sell an asset quickly is one of the most overlooked issues when people invest, Saul told International Adviser. “With physical gold, it isn’t as instant as clicking a button.”
As a result, The Pure Gold Company offers a buyback guarantee that locks in a price and can take between one and three days.
Source: International Adviser
