Gold has rallied 19 percent this year, the best start since 1979, as low interest rates boost the appeal of the metal, which offers returns only through price gains. A sputtering dollar and economic-growth concerns have also spurred demand for bullion as a store of value. Bets that rates in the U.S. will stay lower for longer have given the yellow metal an added lift the past few days.

“The ECB’s monetary amphetamine has driven gold above the key $1,250 level,” Tai Wong, director of commodity products trading at BMO Capital Markets in New York, said in an e-mail. “Draghi’s determination to drive rates ever lower fires up investors’ appetite for gold.”