Gold traders are setting their sights on US$1,400 an ounce, a price not reached since September, as the worst standoff between the West and Russia since the end of the Cold War increases demand for the metal as a haven.The most-traded bullion option on the Comex yesterday was a call giving owners the right to buy at US$1,400 by April, with an estimated 4,547 lots changing hands. That's almost double the amount of the next most-active option and compares with an average volume of 427 in the past month.
Investors are once again flocking to the precious metal, leaving prices poised for the biggest quarterly gain since 2007. Russia's growing military presence in Ukraine is the latest sign of global turmoil fueling the rally after slowing US economic growth and slumps in emerging-market currencies. Money managers are the most bullish on gold in 14 months, government data show. Bullion tumbled 28 per cent in 2013, the biggest drop since 1981.