LONDON: Gold rose to four-week highs on Tuesday and euro-priced gold hit a record peak as investors bought the metal as an alternative to paper currencies amid persistent concerns over smaller euro zone economies.This helped dollar-denominated gold shrug off a 0.75 per cent rise in the dollar s value versus the euro. Spot gold was bid at $1,136.45 at 1427 GMT against $1,129.70 late in New York on Monday.

Earlier it rose as high as $1,136.70 an ounce, its firmest since early March. Euro-priced gold rose to a record 842.46 euros an ounce, against 837.68 late on Monday.

With gold doing well on the crosses and with good physical demand in India and China, there is still a group who are looking at gold as a currency, said Simon Weeks, head of precious metals at the Bank of Nova Scotia.

Indian dealers said demand for the metal in the world s biggest gold market was firm as traders took advantage of a price retreat to stock up ahead of a raft of festivals and for the spring wedding season.