Commerzbank gold analyst Eugen Weinberg said China would have to buy 4,400 tons of gold to reach that level.

Jon Nadler, senior analyst at Kitco Bullion Dealers Montreal, expects gold prices to trade within a range of US$630 to US$980 an ounce this year, with average prices hovering around US$810.

Mr Bove argues that the golden age for equity analysts was the long bear market of the 1960s and 1970s, when advice on how to avoid losing money was highly treasured.