Demand for gold ETFs fell to a seven-year low in 2011 even as overall investment demand for gold hit a 14-year high, according to the World Gold Council.
The Nasdaq reached an 11-year high last week as investors piled into US equities, but Jim Rogers has cautioned on the prospects for the asset class.
Concerns over a potential hard landing in China, the prospect of renewed turmoil in Iraq and plays on the gold price are among the top ten themes for investors to consider in 2012, according to new research.
Barings' multi-asset team has bought £350m in Italian government bonds in the expectation European banks will use the ECB's Long Term Recovery Organisation (LTRO) to buy government debt.
European markets edged lower this morning, echoing falls across Asia overnight, as investors showed caution over the outcome of the Greek debt swap deal.
Gold will remain the best real asset play for investors if central banks continue to print money and risk debasing their currencies, said Ted Scott, director of global strategy at F&C.
Investec Asset Management's Bradley George has revealed the three commodities he expects to outperform this year as the market starts to look through the eurozone crisis to focus on fundamentals.