The price of gold is surging after political uncertainty appears to have pushed investors into safe-haven assets on Wednesday.

The precious metal was trading at $US1,258.50 an ounce as of 11:25 a.m. ET, a $US22.10, or 1.79%, jump on the day.

This is the largest move for gold since March 16, when the metal leapt as much as 2.77% intraday.

The jump comes as traders have shifted into risk-off mode after a New York Times report on Wednesday that former FBI Director James Comey kept records of meetings in which President Donald Trump asked Comey to ease up on his investigation of ties between Trump’s former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn and Russian officials.

The political uncertainty over the fallout seemed to drive markets lower. The Dow Jones industrial average was down roughly 1.3% and the S&P 500 down 1.2%. The US dollar index also slipped to its lowest level since Trump’s election in November.

Gold is often thought of as a safe haven asset in times of uncertainty.

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