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Gold’s London AM fix this morning was USD
1,720.00, EUR 1,308.98, and GBP 1,087.56 per ounce.
Yesterday's AM fix was USD 1,717.00, EUR 1,315.31, and
GBP 1,090.85 per ounce.
Cross Currency Rates – Bloomberg
Gold rose $10 in Asian trading
to reach $1,730/oz as investors nervously watch
Greece. Just prior to European markets opening gold began to fall and has
fallen below the lows in Asia and testing short term support at $1,712/oz.
The labyrinthine debt crisis rumbles on with European
and Greek policy makers continuing to appear somewhat lost and lost for
answers.
Gold Spot $/oz – 5 Days
(Bloomberg)
The Greeks delayed their decision yesterday again.
Greek party leaders face crunch talks again today to secure a new
international bailout and avoid a chaotic debt default.
European and Asian shares saw some looses
as investor concern grows as to whether Greece would eventually be resolved
or trigger contagion across the euro zone which already has many countries
with increasingly shaky economies.
Investors are also awaiting a rate decision by
Australia's central bank later today. They are expected to keep with
the loose money policy and ease interest rates.
Major bullion banker, HSBC, said it was keeping its
2012 gold forecast for $1,850/oz due to central
banks accommodative money policies.
Platinum output in South Africa is likely to decline
this year due to the increase of labour and safety
stoppages, which supports the metal prices but increases the costs for
producers.
While Chinese imports from Hong Kong were down sharply
in December, the annual figures show a remarkable increase in 2011, Chinese
gold imports from Hong Kong - tripled from 2010. There continues to be
suspicions of Chinese official sector gold bullion buying.
Fed's Record Setting Money Supply Splurge Spurs Gold's
Rally
The surge in the U.S. money supply in recent years has
sent gold into a series of new record nominal highs.
Money supply surged again in 2011 sending gold to new
record nominal highs.
Money supply has grown again, by more than 35% on an
annualized basis, and this is contributing to gold’s consolidation and
strong gains in January.
The Federal Reserve's latest weekly money supply report
from last Thursday shows seasonally adjusted M1 rose $13.2 billion to $2.233
trillion, while M2 rose $4.5 billion to $9.768
trillion.
(Bloomberg) -- Gold may challenge and exceed $2,000 an ounce
this year though it is unlikely to stay much above that level, said Tom
Kendall, the head of precious-metals research at Credit Suisse AG’s
securities unit.
The consensus estimate that gold will reach $2,000 this
year prices in “bad outcomes” for the European and U.S. debt
crises, Kendall said in a presentation at the Investing in African Mining
Indaba in Cape Town today.
(Bloomberg) -- Speculators raised bullish bets on commodities
to a 12-week high on signs that global growth will boost demand at a time
when shortages are forecast for everything from copper to palladium to cocoa.
Money managers expanded their combined net-long
position across 18 U.S. futures and options by 11 percent to 823,917
contracts in the week ended Jan. 31, Commodity Futures Trading Commission
data show. That’s the highest since Nov. 8. Gold wagers surged the most
since September 2009, silver holdings rose for a fifth week and cattle bets
climbed to a 10-week high.
(Bloomberg) -- BNP Paribas SA raised its 2012 price
forecasts for palladium to $835 an ounce and for platinum to $1,770 an ounce.
Mine supply estimates were lowered for this year, with
palladium output falling 1 percent, Anne-Laure Tremblay, an analyst at BNP
Paribas, said in a report e-mailed today. Platinum will be in surplus this
year while palladium is in shortage, she said. Palladium was previously
forecast to be $725 an ounce this year and platinum was $1,610, according to
the report.
(Bloomberg) -- Azerbaijan natural gas flow to Turkey halted due
to technical failures, according to state-run Anatolia news agency.
There was also a drop in the amount of gas coming from
Iran, the news agency said. Breakdowns at compression stations in Azerbaijan
and Iran triggered the shortages, Anatolia reported, without saying how it
got the information.
Turkish Energy Ministry officials told the news agency
that power plants using natural gas switched to diesel and fuel oil to
generate electricity. There are no cuts in gas services to residential
buildings or industrial plants, ministry officials said, according to
Anatolia.
(Bloomberg) -- A policy of nationalizing mines would not be a
“smart strategy” for South Africa and changes to taxes or
ownership will only be made after extensive consultation with the industry,
Trevor Manuel, the country’s planning minister, said.
While a study into nationalization of mines
commissioned by the country’s ruling African National Congress has
recommended against the policy, it has proposed increased taxes, a party
official who has read the document said last week, declining to be identified
because it hasn’t been publicly released. Manuel is a member of the
ANC’s Economic Policy Committee, which has discussed the study.
“It doesn’t call for nationalization, it
calls for new partnerships,” Manuel told the Mining Indaba conference
in Cape Town today. “Given the long lead time the industry deserves
policy certainty.”
The ANC commissioned the study after calls by it youth
wing for nationalization because it said the country’s black majority
isn’t benefiting enough from the industry that is the world’s
biggest producer of platinum, chrome and manganese. Anglo American Plc, Xstrata Plc, BHP Billiton
Ltd. and Rio Tinto Group own assets in the country
“If you want then to take away those property
rights you’re going to have to pay for it and if you pay for that
you’re not going to be able to pay for health, education or anything
else,” Manuel said, adding that the constitution protects property
rights. “The country does not have the resources. It clearly is not a
smart strategy.”
While elements of the study could concern the mining
industry, the proposals will undergo extensive debate before they stand a
chance of becoming policy, he said.
“There are proposals in there that would worry
many people,” he said. “It’s important not ever to confuse
proposals with adopted policy.”
The ANC study will be discussed and may influence
policy arguments at party conferences in June and December.
For breaking news and commentary on financial markets
and gold, follow us on Twitter.
SILVER
Silver is trading at $33.35/oz,
€25.41/oz and £21.09/oz.
PLATINUM GROUP METALS
Platinum is trading at $1,615.25/oz, palladium at
$690/oz and rhodium at $1,400/oz.
NEWS
(Reuters)
Hong Kong gold flow to China more than triples in
2011
(Reuters)
Gold snaps two-day slide; Greece eyed
(Economic Times)
HSBC maintains bullish 2012 gold forecast at $1,850
an ounce
(MarketWatch)
Gold falls on dollar strength, lower stocks
COMMENTARY
(KingWorldNews)
Greyerz - Gold Price to Hit $5,000 in 24 Months
& Silver $166
(International Business Times)
Fed Reserve Branch Chief Warns of 'Looming Disaster'
(MarketWatch)
Stocks Hmmm — Gold Maybe?
(GATA)
Murray Pollitt's Final Commentary: Money Mountain
(KingWorldNews)
John Williams - Unemployment Rate at a Staggering
22.5%
(ZeroHedge)
As Falls Sarkozy, So Falls Europe: The Full Story
Behind The Upcoming French Election
Mark
O’Byrne
Goldcore
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