Bullish bets on gold by hedge funds and other large investors have soared to their highest level in over four years, as the precious metal continued its climb following the Federal Reserve’s first interest-rate cut since 2020, according to a report by Bloomberg.

The report cites the latest weekly data released by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission on Friday, as showing that speculators increased their net-long positions by 0.9% to 254,841 contracts as of 24 September, marking the highest level since March 2020.

Gold prices meanwhile, hit an all-time high of $2,685.58 an ounce last week, building on a series of record-setting gains fuelled by growing optimism that the Federal Reserve will implement further rate cuts in the coming months.