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Monday, 11 July 2011 13:48
by Amanda Cooper
Gold in Pounds Hits Record, Debt Crisis Deepens
London (Reuters) - Gold priced in sterling hit a record high on Monday morning, powered by a broad push into bullion that also sent euro-denominated metal to a lifetime peak as deepening concern over the spread of the euro zone crisis rattled investors.
Gold in pounds hit a record high of 969.93 pounds an ounce, before trading up 0.9 percent on the day at 968.37 pounds by 0745 GMT. Sterling-priced gold has risen by 6.0 percent in 2011, fuelled also by concern about the British economy, where growth is sluggish and consumer price pressures continue to build.
The European Union called an emergency meeting on Monday with officials charged with dealing with the euro zone debt crisis after Italian assets were pummelled on Friday and concern grew that Italy, the single currency bloc member with the highest debt-to-GDP ratio after Greece, could be next to suffer.
Euro-denominated gold also hit a lifetime high above 1,090 euros an ounce, while the euro fell by more than 0.5 percent against the dollar and Italian stocks and bonds tumbled. (Reporting by Amanda Cooper; editing by Jason Neely)