Gold prices continued to rise on Tuesday as the protracted trade war between the United States and China intensified after US gold futures rose 0.3 per cent to $1,480.90 an ounce.
The US Treasury Department said on Monday it had determined for the first time since 1994 that China was manipulating its currency, and that Washington would engage the
International Monetary Fund to eliminate unfair competition from Beijing.
The US action comes after China allowed its yuan to weaken past the key 7-per-dollar level on Monday for the first time in more than a decade, following Trump's decision to impose 10 per cent tariffs on $300 billion of Chinese imports, ending a month-long trade truce.
The move also pushed the dollar down against the yen and the euro, while US stock futures fell on worries the trade conflict with China would hurt US economic growth and corporate profits.
MSCI's All Country World index, which tracks shares in 47 countries, extended last week's slide and has slumped 2.5 per cent to a two-month low on Monday.
Gold priced in sterling soared to a record high on Monday, spurred by fear of a disorderly British exit from the
European Union amidst trade tensions.
SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed
exchange-traded fund, said its holdings rose 0.53 per cent to 835.16 tonnes on Monday from 830.76 tonnes on Friday.