Warren Buffett, the Sage of Omaha, has long been sceptical about investing in gold. The investment king has expounded on its shortcomings – "neither of much use nor procreative" – and dismissed it as an asset for the fearful.

What motivates most gold bugs, he wrote in 2012, "is their belief that the ranks of the fearful will grow". Well, fear came to 2020 in a big way, and Buffett, 90, wasn't going to miss out. In August, his investment company Berkshire Hathaway took a £430 million ($760 million) stake in Canadian miner Barrick Gold, whose fortunes are intimately tied to the gold price.

The Telegraph London