Asia is witnessing one of the strongest waves of physical gold buying in 30 years, with bargain-hunters using the drop in prices to secure jewellery and gold bars.

Feverish buying has left many of Hong Kong’s banks, jewellers and even its gold exchange without enough yellow metal to meet demand. In Shanghai, the gold exchange saw volumes – often seen as a proxy for demand – at a record yesterday. Queues formed outside some jewellery shops in Beijing.

The buying surge in China, Hong Kong, India and other Asian countries contrasts with heavy selling last week, when investors dumped billions of dollars of gold-related assets. The strong Asian buying has provided support for global gold prices. Yesterday the cost of the metal rose to $1,438.66 a troy ounce, up from 8.1 per cent from the low set last week.