Despite gold prices being below their absolute record of $1923 an ounce in September 2011, the worldwide trade is expanding. Last month investors put over $3.1 bn in SPDR Gold, the largest gold exchange fund. The Bank of Korea boosted its gold reserves to 54.4 tons, while Japan's gold exports hit the record of 955.6 metric tonnes. Moreover, many investors embarked on selling gold on high prices.