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Today’s
AM fix was USD 1,790.00, EUR 1,375.55, and GBP 1,105.69 per ounce.
Yesterday’s AM fix was USD 1,786.50, EUR 1,380.92 and GBP 1,109.01 per
ounce.
Silver is
trading at $34.91/oz, €26.95/oz and £21.65/oz. Platinum is trading at $1,714.00/oz, palladium at $664.99/oz and
rhodium at $1,195/oz.
Gold rose $12.30 or 0.69% in New York yesterday and closed at
$1,790.80. Gold pulled back after the Fed released Minutes from their
September 12th meeting, but it still ended with a gain. Silver finished the
day with a gain of 1.16%.
Gold reached
an 11 month high on Friday riding its 5th day of gains as quantitative easing
from central banks continue to see the yellow metal shine as an inflation
hedge while investors await the key US jobs data at 1230 GMT.
The European
Central Bank left interest rates unchanged on Thursday and said it was ready
to purchase government bonds of debt-laden nations, sending the euro upward
and pushing gold near $1,800 - a level that has not been reached since last
November.
Tensions in
the Middle East are heated as Syria shelled a Turkish town and killed 5
civilians and this has propelled the two former allies into conflict. The
United Nations condemned the attack, however yesterday Turkey's parliament
gave legal authority to the military to launch cross-border raids into Syria
at any time over the next year. The vote passed by 320 to 129. Turkish
government officials stated they do not want war with Syria but they are
prepared to protect their people and borders.
Certainly this
geopolitical crisis is another boost to gold’s appeal in addition to
investors who still feel central banks including China, will initiate more QE
to stimulate their lacklustre economies.
The Fed
minutes released show that the governing board may set up numerical
thresholds for inflation and unemployment figures that would serve as a
guideline for its monetary policy. The nonfarm payrolls number will indicate
whether the Fed’s monetary policy is having the required effect on the labour market. A surprise on the upside could dampen the
sentiment in gold, as it would show the monthly liquidity injection of $40
billion would not be needed.
Precious
metals have all run up with the recent loose money
policies enacted by various governments. Clearly the market darling of late
is silver which is now gaining favour in Asia for
its value appeal. Spot silver traded in New York has risen by 27% since the
end of June, while the price of spot gold has increased by a meek 12%.
Analysts say
future Indian demand is key for silver’s price
to climb.
Futures
contracts for silver at India's largest commodity exchange, the Multi
Commodity Exchange, rocketed 30% in September compared with July, while
volumes fell by 10% for gold futures contracts over the same period.
Indian rupee
weakness sent gold prices in rupees to an all time
high this year, while silver never exceeded the record it hit last April.
Rupee-denominated silver is currently being quoted around 20% below the
record.
Indian
investors have ceased purchasing because the 2 weeks ending Oct. 15th is
regarded as inauspicious. The buying will commence and peak during the week
ahead of the Hindu festival of Diwali on November 13th.
In China, on
the Shanghai Futures Exchange silver futures were up 29% at the end of
September verses the end of June, while gold climbed 13%, according to data
from the exchange's website.
Silver is used
both as a precious-metal investment and in applications that use its
conductivity like smart phones and semiconductors, where consumption is
continuing to grow at fever pitch.
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