Gold prices remained high today, on the 22nd of March 2011, due to gold’s continuing appeal as a safe-haven in light of the growing unrest in the Middle East and concerns about a nuclear catastrophe erupting in Japan. Spot gold increased by 0.4 percent at USD $ 1430.45 an ounce. It is expected that in the medium and long term, strong demand of gold will continue due to concerns about rising global inflation as a result of the fallout of the Japanese economy. Inflationary concerns have already spread from emerging economies like China to developed economies like the euro zone countries. Furthermore, an extended duration of rising oil prices will fuel inflation, thereby increasing the demand of gold since it is used as a hedge against inflation.