Seoul, April 20 (IANS) The trading volume of gold in South Korea has jumped sharply this month amid escalating tensions in the Middle East, data showed on Saturday.

The daily trading volume of gold in the country came to 16.9 billion won ($12.25 million) as of Friday, according to the data from Korea Exchange (KRX), the country's bourse operator.

The reading marks a sharp increase from a daily average of 6.86 billion won for March, reports Yonhap news agency.

Such an increase follows tensions in the Middle East, prompted by Iran's drone and missile attacks against Israel earlier in the month that apparently forced investors to seek safe assets.

Israel reportedly staged retaliatory attacks against Iran this week.

As of Friday, the average price of a 1 kilogram gold bar jumped 10.3 per cent on-month, with that of 100 gram nuggets spiking 13.4 per cent, according to the KRX.

"The instability in the Middle East is expected to remain at a heightened level for the time being, causing fluctuations in global oil prices and prompting investors to avoid risks," Samsung Securities researcher Yoo Seung-min said.