Strong investor buying yesterday pushed the price of gold above $900 a troy ounce, hitting a 3½-month high in dollar terms and posting all-time highs in euro and sterling, in a stark sign of money seeking refuge from equities and bond markets.

Traders said that investors, particularly in continental Europe and the UK, were pouring money into gold exchange-traded funds - a popular way to gain access to the metal - and also noted strong buying of physical gold, from coins to bars.