Gold headed for a second monthly gain as investors flocked to haven assets amid a global scramble to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
The World Health Organization declared the outbreak in China a public health emergency of international concern, a step that will let health authorities aid countries with less-robust health systems. There's no sign of the outbreak abating though -- confirmed cases have jumped, the U.S. reported the first human-to-human transmission and warned Americans not to travel to China, while Russia closed its land border with the Asian nation to travelers.
Spot gold was little changed at $1,572.70 an ounce at 10:16 a.m. in Singapore, and is up 3.6% in January. On an intraday basis, bullion briefly topped $1,600 earlier this month amid a flare-up in U.S.-Iranian tensions. The flight from risk has seen holdings in global exchange-traded funds backed by bullion surge to near a record.
Among other main precious metals, silver and platinum were little changed. Palladium added 0.4%, taking its monthly gain to 19%, the most since November 2016.
Source : Bloomberg