Bank of Korea buys gold, first time since '97-'98 crisis

Townhall Staff | Aug 02, 2011

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SEOUL, Aug 2 (Reuters) - South Korea's central bank bought 25 tonnes of gold over the past two months in its first purchase in more than a decade, saying the time was ripe to boost its gold holding, but markets barely moved on the news.

A brittle global economic recovery and precarious debt situations in the United States and Europe have boosted the safe-haven appeal of gold, lifting bullion to a series of record highs in July, as investors and central banks chased prices higher.