Gold Rises to Record Closing Price on Mounting Demand for Haven

May 13th, 2010. Published under News. No Comments.

 By Pham-Duy Nguyen

May 11 (Bloomberg) — Gold rose, closing at the highest price ever in New York, as demand for a haven mounted amid escalating European-debt concerns. Silver climbed, capping the biggest-three session rally since March 2009.

Gold futures settled at $1,220.30 an ounce and traded within 0.2 percent of the intraday record set in December. The euro fell as much as 0.9 percent against the dollar on concern the $1 trillion pledged to rescue Europe’s indebted nations won’t be enough to contain sovereign-debt risks. Chinese equities entered a bear market, and stocks in Europe retreated.

“When you’ve got this much uncertainty in the world, there are no other good alternatives than gold,” said Matt Zeman, a metal trader at LaSalle Futures Group in Chicago. “Europe is just piling more debt on top of more debt. It’s just a matter of time before you see runs on banks.” (more…)

New dollar high point for gold on more risk aversion

May 13th, 2010. Published under News. No Comments.

Continued uncertainty over the Euro and any short term recovery in the West, pushed gold to a new high with upwards momentum continuing.

Author: Ross Norman
Posted:  Tuesday , 11 May 2010 

LONDON (THEBULLIONDESK.COM) - 

Late this afternoon gold prices hit an all time high at $1234 – surpassing the previous high of $1227, a level not seen since December 2009 as investors moved into risk aversion mode following the mounting concerns over the sovereign debt crisis.

The measures introduced to support Greece with an aid package saw an initial relief rally in both the currency and equity markets on Monday but the euphoria quickly faded, with a corresponding rise in gold prices.   The gold price strength reflects concerns that despite the financial aid package, some Eurozone countries may nevertheless have difficulty in reducing their budget deficits.

Traditionally gold prices have moved inversely with the US dollar but the current move higher in gold is in tandem with dollar strength because of the overwhelming desire amongst investors for safe haven assets. (more…)

After rallying toward record gold slips back below $1,200

May 7th, 2010. Published under News. 1 Comment.

After rallying toward record gold slips back below $1,200

The price of the yellow metal edged down in early trade on Friday after rising toward an all time high yesterday on escalating debt concerns and falling US stocks

Author: Lewa Pardomuan (Reuters)
Posted:  Friday , 07 May 2010 

SINGAPORE (REUTERS)  - 

Gold edged down on Friday after rising toward an all-time high the previous day on Europe’s escalating debt woes and tumbling U.S. stocks, but strong safe haven demand is likely to help the metal test new highs.

Gold has gained as much as 10 percent this year as investors spooked by potential contagion from the eurozone debt crisis rushed to buy to the precious metal, whose safe haven appeal tends to increase in times of economic and geopolitical crises.

Spot gold was at $1,199.50 an ounce at 0301 GMT, down $7.75 cents from New York’s notional close on Thursday, when it jumped 3 percent to its highest since December 2009 at $1,210.35 an ounce — marking its biggest one-day gain in more than a year. (more…)

Gold’s future bright as ‘anti-currency’ (FinancialPost.com)

May 4th, 2010. Published under News. 1 Comment.

Gold climbed to a fresh five-month high Monday as the European debt crisis continued to pressure the euro and drive investors to the U.S. dollar.

Nymex gold for June delivery closed up US$2.60 to US$1,183.30 per ounce as analysts forecast the metal would break psychological resistance at US$1,200 and test its record high of US$1,227 set in December 2009.

“Gold is not just viewed as an inflation hedge in the current market,” said George Davis, chief technical analyst at RBC Capital Markets. “Given the euro region sovereign risk emanating from Greece, gold is also being used as a hedge against a potential financial crisis.”

He told clients that any lingering uncertainty over the Greek bailout or a “contagion effect” in Europe would be positive for the metal.

While a 110-billion euro bailout package for Greece was approved over the weekend, investors remain skeptical about the prospects for the Eurozone. That lead to further gains for precious metals in May’s first trading session. (more…)

gold investors tripple their money

January 13th, 2010. Published under News. No Comments.

Johannesburg – Investors who bought gold at the beginning of the decade tripled their money by December 21, 2009, the SA Gold Coin Exchange (SAGCE) said on Wednesday.

The next 10 years could yield similar results, Alan Demby, the exchange’s executive chairperson said in a statement.

The SAGCE’s comments followed the publication of an analysis by Bloomberg to determine how much US100 would have returned over the past decade if it had been invested in six asset classes: gold, commodities, oil, high-grade bonds, US Treasuries and stocks.

“Accordingly, canny long-term investors who have been steadily accumulating Kruger Rands are well satisfied with their strategies,” Demby said.

“Although 10 years is a long investment horizon, the way things stand at present it would not surprise me if a similar phenomenon eventuated in the decade to 2019.

“Indeed, with several trillion dollars in circulation now compared to ten years ago, the outlook for gold must be compelling as the dollar continues to devalue,” Demby said.

- Sapa

Gold still moving up

November 26th, 2009. Published under News. No Comments.

Tokyo – Gold hit a record high above $1 192 on Thursday as the dollar stumbled further and sentiment remained solid on expectations of more central bank buying of bullion.

The dollar extended losses on Thursday, falling to its lowest in 14 years against the yen and hitting a fresh 15-month low against a basket of six major currencies.

Gold prices have risen about 15 percent since the beginning of November, with demand fuelled by expectations of further reserve diversification, prospects for a sickly US currency and fears about inflation in 2010.

The market is highly sensitive to speculation of more bullion buying by central banks looking to diversify foreign exchange reserves, particularly in Asia, after a newspaper report that India is open to buying more gold from the International Monetary Fund following its purchase of 200 tonnes earlier this month.

The IMF had no comment on the report.

Late on Wednesday, the IMF said it had sold 10 tonnes of gold to the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, a part of 403.3 tonnes of sales approved by the fund’s executive board in September. The fund has already sold 202 tons of gold to the Reserve Bank of India and the Bank of Mauritius.

“Everybody is bullish on gold, and everybody is looking at the signal central banks are sending,” said Dick Poon, manager of precious metals at Heraeus in Hong Kong.

“It’s not just India or China, but most of the central banks, as well as funds, have changed their portfolios to include gold. So, everybody is looking at how much money they will invest in gold,” he said.

He said there was a lot of physical demand despite high prices, with Asian buyers seen in the market.

Spot gold hit a fresh record high of $1 194.70, up from New York’s notional close of $1 190.30.

US December gold futures also rose to a fresh high of $1 194.80 per ounce. Futures settled up $21.20, or 1.8%, at $1 187.00 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Vietnam’s central bank has granted quotas for the import of 10 tonnes of gold since lifting an import ban earlier this month, and 6.8 tonnes had already come in, state broadcaster VTV said on Wednesday.

Russia’s central bank bought 15.6 tonnes in October and has said it aims to increase gold’s share in its reserves this year.

“These moves further add to market speculation that central banks will continue to buy gold,” said Wakako Harada, a senior trader at Mitsubishi Corp in Tokyo.

US markets will be closed on Thursday for the Thanksgiving holiday.

“Reserve diversification moves by non-G7 central banks underscore investor detachment from dollar assets and is clearly reflected in gold’s rally,” said Shuji Sugata, a manager at Mitsubishi Corp Futures’ research team.

Traders said volume was not large, with many players kept to the sidelines due to the Thanksgiving holiday.

Yuichi Ikemizu, Tokyo branch manager for Standard Bank, said he did not expect strong follow-through buying, as players were likely to become cautious with the US on holiday.

“But sentiment is underpinned by speculation about central bank buying of gold, with many believing India will buy more from the IMF. And the dollar’s weakness is also supportive,” he said.

With many market players expecting gold’s bull run to continue, investment in gold increased.

The world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR Gold Trust, said its holdings stood at 1nbsp;127.860 tonnes as of November 25, up 5.489 tonnes, or 0.5 %, from the previous day and just shy of a record 1 134.03 tonnes hit on June 1.

- Reuters

scoinshop opens in London

November 25th, 2009. Published under News. 1 Comment.

Alan Demby speaks to Talk Radio 702 about the opening of the first ScoinShop out of SA

Gold hits record above $1120

November 12th, 2009. Published under News. No Comments.

Tokyo – Gold rose above $1 120 per ounce to hit a record high on Thursday for the second straight day as investors focused on the precious metal’s appeal as a hedge against a weakening dollar.

Improvements in the economic outlook also lent support to the precious metal. Gold is often seen as a hedge against energy price-led inflation.

Spot gold was at $1 119.65 an ounce as of 02:32 GMT after rising to a record $1 121.60, compared with New York’s notional close of $1 117.45.

Bullion has now renewed record highs for six out of the past eight sessions.

US gold futures for December delivery traded at $1 120.30 an ounce, up 0.5%. The contract earlier rose to a fresh record of $1 122.20. (more…)

If it’s not the Chinese, what’s driving the price of gold?

September 7th, 2009. Published under News. No Comments.

If it’s not the Chinese, what’s driving the price of gold?

ALEC HOGG: Well, that gold price is now trading at $990/oz. It has suddenly come to life. Paul Walker is the chief executive of GFMS, and he joins us from Paris. Paul, on Mineweb, Moneyweb’s international website today, Lawrie Williams wrote a story about China pushing the idea of buying gold to its 1.3bn population. There was a programme on Central China Television explaining to the public how easy it is to buy gold, and this is being interpreted – in some quarters, anyway – as part of the reason why the gold price seems to be sprinting towards $1000. Is that wishful thinking?

PAUL WALKER: Well, I don’t think as much as wishful thinking – it’s actually been a story that’s been around for some time. If you have a look at GFMS data on China, it’s been the one outstanding growth market throughout this bull rally. It’s outperformed every other gold market both in value and, most important, quantity terms from the perspective of supply and demand balances in this market. So it’s already to an extent in the price and there’s no doubt that growth in China, ongoing (more…)

Gold eases from 7-week high

August 4th, 2009. Published under News. No Comments.

Tokyo – Gold eased on Tuesday from a seven-week high marked in New York the previous day as waning investor appetite for the precious metal capped gains despite the dollar remaining close to this year’s low.

Bullion rose to $962.10 an ounce in New York on Monday, its highest since June 10, boosted by a weaker dollar, which lost some of its safe-haven appeal in the face of a rally on Wall Street and encouraging economic data.

Kazuhiko Saito, chief analyst at Tokyo’s Fujitomi Co Ltd, said that while a weaker dollar was continuing to lend support to gold, the precious metal was showing signs of being top heavy.

“Gold has lost some of its appeal as a safe haven… and it’s no longer such an attractive investment instrument,” he said.

Investment money was shifting out of gold, he said, which was underscored by a decline in holdings in gold-backed exchange-traded funds, which have been mostly on a downtrend since June. (more…)