Take punt on performance deposits

If you're convinced that gold still has room to rise, the simple strategy is to buy some coins or bullion, cross your fingers and wait.

Or you could buy shares in mining companies, in the hope that a further rise in gold will rub off on the share price.

Overseas, there are also managed funds which invest in gold-related shares.

Another strategy comes from Westpac, which is offering what it calls "performance deposits".

These allow investors to profit from a change in the gold price.

The deposits are a combination of a regular term deposit and a punt on gold.

Terms range from four weeks to a year and the minimum investment is $10,000.

At the beginning you have to decide whether you think gold is going to rise, fall, or trade within a certain range.

At the end of the term you get back your initial investment and - if the gold price has behaved as you predicted it would - a return on your money.

Westpac's rates change from time to time but, based on what the bank is offering now, an investor who believed gold was sure to rise could buy a 364-day deposit and would then receive 66.79 per cent of any rise in the gold price between now and the time the deposit matures.

So, if gold goes up by 20 per cent, the investor would receive a profit of 13.36 per cent, or $1336 on a $10,000 investment (because 66.79 per cent of 20 per cent is 13.36 per cent), as well as getting back the original $10,000.

If the gold price doesn't behave as expected, you don't get a return but you don't lose any money, either - apart from the interest you've missed while Westpac has your money.

Advantages include convenience - you don't have to hide performance bonds under the bed or hire a safety deposit box - and the fact that the risk is limited.

On the downside, you get only part of any change in the gold price.

And since the return calculations are based on gold prices as expressed in Australian dollars, any movement in the exchange rate will also affect your profits, but not the return of your original investment.

And, unlike real gold, you can't just sell whenever you want, or not without paying a penalty.