A case for gold

For anyone with a balanced portfolio, however, this loss on gold has been tolerable because it has come at a time when equities have done okay. Gains on shares should, therefore, have offset losses on gold.

And herein lies the case for continuing to hold gold. It's possible that real interest rates and the US dollar will fall back - either because the global economy disappoints expectations again or because investors fear that Mr Trump's anti-globalisation agenda will depress long-term growth.

In such circumstances gold might well recover. And such a recovery would be welcome for investors, because in such circumstances equities might well do badly.

A case for gold