Global commodity investments at record high for Jan-Aug: Barclays

[NEW YORK] Investments in commodities were at their highest ever from January through August compared to the same period in any year, while global commodity assets under management (AUM) stood at US$235 billion in August, Barclays said in a monthly note on Thursday.

In terms of investments, August saw an inflow of US$3.2 billion into commodities, compared with US$2.4 billion in July.

Total investments in commodities from January-August stood at US$54 billion, an all-time high for the first eight months of any year, up from the previous record of US$53 billion in 2009, the bank said.

"Gold is the most popular investment this year, on its own accounting for half of the total investment flow into commodities. Uncertainty about the financial sector and global growth and rising political risks seems likely to support continued flows into the sector," analysts at the bank said.

The August AUM, which was at par with July's AUM of US$235 billion, had precious metals accounting for about 54 per cent at US$126 billion and energy at US$60 billion.

Precious metals gathered investment inflows of US$1.4 billion, compared with US$1.5 billion in July, while investments in energy were at US$0.9 billion in August, the same as in July.

REUTERS