Billionaire George Soros has cut investment in US stocks by one-third and acquired a $264 million stake in the world’s biggest bullion producer, Barrick Gold, Bloomberg reports, quoting the investor’s fund data.

Overall, in the first quarter of 2016 the value of publicly disclosed holdings of Soros Fund Management fell by 37 percent to $3.5 billion.

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At the same time, Soros bought a 1.7 percent stake in Toronto-based Barrick Gold for $264 million, the biggest US holding in the company.

“Gold is always a safe haven at times when risks for investors are escalating. It’s better to sit out turbulence with gold,” economist Natalya Volchkova told the Ridus news agency.

“Soros is killing two birds with one stone. He leaves to gold, when it is cheaper so that he could profitably get rid of it in future. At the same time, he leaves the more volatile dollar for a more stable asset," she added.

Gold prices have grown 16 percent in the first three months of 2016. This is the biggest quarterly growth in thirty years. Barrick shares have skyrocketed 39 percent since March 31 on news that the company has been rapidly cutting costs and reducing debt.

On Tuesday, the precious metal was trading at $1,280 per troy ounce.

Many proponents of gold in the US are suggesting that the dollar should be backed by gold again. Among them is Ted Cruz, who was running for the Republican nomination for US president. He said the Federal Reserve “should get out of the business of trying to juice our economy, and simply be focused on sound money and monetary stability, ideally tied to gold.”