Gold gains as faith in paper declines

Gold has fallen for four years on the trot, but 2016 could be a different story. The yellow metal leapt by 20% in the first quarter, its best three-month performance since the global crisis erupted in late 2008. The equity market wobble in January helped bolster gold's safe-haven appeal, while negative interest rates have also stimulated buying, says Kyle Caldwell in The Daily Telegraph.

They have rendered bonds less appealing 30% of high-quality sovereign paper is on a negative yield and make gold's lack of income less of a disadvantage.

Negative interest rates also fuel fears that central banks may be running out of options, and gold does best when people lose faith in central banks, says BullionVault.com's Adrian Ash. They would lose even more faith in them if inflation makes a comeback. Hold on to your gold.