Gold Prices Soar Despite Rate Fluctuations on US Fiscal Worries

Gold prices continue to rise despite fluctuations in interest rates, drawing in retail investors who have bought a net 114.02 billion won ($79 million) worth of gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs) over the past month.

The largest purchases were made by individuals buying into spot gold ETFs, with ACE KRX Gold Spot and TIGER KRX Gold Spot seeing net purchases of 70.166 billion won and 33.526 billion won respectively.

Gold prices have been strong globally as well, with December gold futures reaching around $4,700 an ounce this month, up from $4,508.00 on the New York Commodity Exchange (COMEX) in late August.

The rally is largely driven by concerns over U.S. fiscal health, with the country's budget deficit coming in at $432.3 billion in July and total debt topping $40 trillion.