One piece of evidence was a skid in utility stocks, a traditional haven for nervous investors.

Gold is a traditional haven for nervous investors in times of international crisis.

Gold rose by 1.5pc as investors fled to the traditional safe haven.

The flows into money market funds, a traditional haven for worried investors, have been more dramatic.

And Austria, a traditional haven for refugees in cold war days, has sent 4,000 soldiers to seal its borders.

Until the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, the dollar had been the traditional haven.

Even gold, the traditional haven for investors in times of international crisis, showed a decrease.

The mark, a traditional safe haven for European investors, then strengthened against other currencies, including the dollar.

And the price of gold, a traditional haven in times of uncertainty, surged $3.10, to $390.50.

Investors looking to reduce their risk helped push the yield on the 30-year bond, a traditional haven, briefly below 6 percent.