Julius Baer gold ETF holdings rise 2.4 pct

LONDON, July 30 (Reuters) - Holdings of Julius Baer's (BAER.VX) gold-backed exchange-traded fund rose 44,000 ounces or 2.4 percent on July 29, the bank said in its weekly statement on Thursday.

The amount of gold the fund holds to back its exchange-traded securities had climbed to a record 1.849 million ounces by Wednesday, from 1.805 million ounces the day before, it said.

Exchange-traded funds issue securities backed by physical commodities, which give buyers exposure to the underlying asset price without having to buy and store the commodity itself. (Reporting by Jan Harvey; Editing by Peter Blackburn)