BEIJING: The price of gold surged to a record above $1,926 per ounce on Monday as investors moved money into an asset seen as a safe haven amid jitters about US-Chinese tension and the recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.

Gold rose more than $30 to $1,926.20 by early afternoon in Asia. It added 1.5% after breaking its 2011 record high on Friday.

Prices of gold and silver have jumped as rising infection numbers and job losses in the United States and some other economies fuel concern the recovery from the virus and the worst global downturn since the 1930s might be faltering.

Precious metals, along with bonds, often are seen as stores of value when financial markets decline. Forecasters watch their prices as an indicator of how investors see the economic future.