Gold prices touched a nine-week high of $1,102.80 an ounce on Thursday in international markets in response to the sharp fall suffered by stock markets globally, with the Chinese stock exchanges being forced to suspend trading for the day after the over-7% crash.

But prices came down to $1,098 per ounce later in the day.

Gold prices have been rising in India too, with the yellow metal gaining for the third consecutive day on Wednesday to close at Rs 25,900. It gained Rs 430 on Thursday and closed at Rs 26,330.

The spurt in gold prices also led to an increase in the values of gold exchange traded funds (ETFs), with Religare Gold ETF rising sharply by 2.57%. Other gold ETFs such as IDBI Gold ETF, Axis Gold ETF and Reliance Gold ETF were also trading with gains on the NSE.

The Chinese stock markets crashed over 7% within less than an hour of trading, leading to the circuit breaker being triggered. As a consequence, both the Shanghai and Shenzhen markets closed for the rest of the day, reported Reuters.

Meanwhile, crude oil prices plunged to a 11-year low on Wednesday, losing more than 5% to fall below $35 per barrel on concerns of a Chinese slowdown and rising geopolitical tensions in West Asia between Saudi Arabia and Iran following the execution of an Iranian shiite cleric and the subsequent violent protests.

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