Gold

George Soros doubled his investment in the world's largest gold fund just weeks before claiming investing in the precious metal is now the "ultimate bubble".

Graham Birch, head of BlackRock's Natural Resources team, has decided not to return to the company following his nine-month sabbatical.

Former New Star CIO Alan Miller believes gold is the most "dangerous" asset class for investors in 2010.

Gold is entering a new era. In the past gold has been thought of primarily as a safe haven, but now it is recognised as a preserver of wealth by both institutional and private investors, relevant whatever the economic weather.

While central banks and governments have started to think about how they might navigate a return to normality, there is little evidence that an exit is imminent

An ounce of gold now costs an all time high of $1,043.77 after a dip in the dollar boosted the attractiveness of metals to investors.

The rising price of gold simply reaffirms investor scepticism about an apparent economic recovery and places the US dollar's position as the world's leading reserve currency further in doubt, F&C's Ted Scott says.

Gold has broken though the $1,000 an ounce barrier for the first time in six months, as doubts grow about the strength of the global recovery.

Following a 70% rally from the lows of March, Asian equities' outperformance gap versus the rest of the world has widened even further, resulting in 31% outperformance for the first seven months of the year.

Most investors are accustomed to reading about the gold and oil markets, but few have considered the benefits of diversifying their portfolios using agricultural commodities.