Bullion & Business Weekend Report – Feb 7

Precious metals were split for the week with gold closing lower along with oil. Silver and platinum climbed as did U.S. and European stocks. For the numbers, the London gold fixing ended 0.7 percent lower while silver and platinum gained 3.0 percent and 0.6 percent, respectively. The Dow gained 3.5 percent, the S&P rose 5.2 percent and the Nasdaq climbed 7.8 percent.

New York crude-oil for March delivery closed to $40.17 a barrel on Friday, losing $1, or 2.4 percent, and dropped 3.6 percent on the week.

AAA said the average price for unleaded gasoline on Saturday settled to $1.916 a gallon compared to $1.762 a month ago and $2.996 one year back.

London silver ended at $12.89 an ounce, rising 38 cents since last Friday’s close.

London gold closed to $913.00 an ounce, falling $6.50 for the week.

London platinum settled to $989 an ounce, climbing $6.00 on the week.

"Gold continues to benefit from destructive monetary policies which are being pursued globally,” Peter Spina, chief investment analyst at GoldSeek.com was quoted on MarketWatch. "As capital seeks to preserve its purchasing power, currencies once deemed more powerful than gold are now being questioned."

"Gold traders are likely to be buying on inflation worries if the stimulus bill passes," Tom Hartmann, a commodity analyst at AltaVest Worldwide Trading Inc. in Mission Viejo, California, was quoted on Bloomberg.com.

Gold, considered a hedge during times of high inflation and economic uncertainty, tends to follow oil and move opposite to the U.S. dollar. A rising greenback makes dollar-denominated commodities, like bullion, more expensive for holders of other world currencies.

When prices are falling and economic activities are shrinking, gold prices tend to move lower. London Fix gold is used as a world benchmark for immediate delivery.

Silver, gold and platinum performance charts and tables follow as well as a Reuters weekly business recap video and related precious metal and business article sources.

CoinNews London Fix Charts: Silver, Gold and Platinum
(Jan. 30 – Feb. 6)

The London Fix is one of the most used bullion quotes around the world. The London AM fix for gold and platinum begins at 10:30am GMT (5:30am in New York), and the PM fix begins at 3pm GMT (10am in New York). The London Fix for silver begins each business day at 12pm GMT (7am in New York).

London Fix figures: percent and dollar changes

Bullion articles of interest

In related news, interesting or quick-read articles:

• Feb. 6 – Gold ends slightly higher after U.S. jobs data – MarketWatch
  Gold futures ended Friday slightly higher as investors in the precious metal looked past the worst job losses in 34 years and followed a broad rally in stocks on Wall Street.

• Feb. 6 – Gold Is Little Changed on Stock Rally; Silver Rises for 3rd Day – Bloomberg
  Gold prices were little changed as equities rallied on expectations the U.S. Congress will pass a stimulus package to revive the economy. Silver gained for the third day in a row.

• Feb. 6 – A Job for Jobe – Jon Nadler, Kitco
  Good as the going may have been earlier in the week, gold bullion appeared headed for its first weekly drop in three, on Friday.

• Feb. 5 – US Mint Silver Coin Sales Stats – Silver Coins Today
  Despite a recent rise in silver prices, US silver collector coin sales have decreased compared to the last figures reported on January 23.

• Feb. 5 – US Mint Gold, Platinum and Silver Coin Sales Figures – CoinNews
  No sales figure changes were reported this week for the remaining 2008-W American Eagle Gold Uncirculated Coins. Unusual give other collector coins moved and coins did sell. In fact, the gold eagle four-coin set sold out Tuesday.

Video: Business week and stocks news by Reuters

US job losses continue to surge as 598,000 jobs were chopped from payrolls in January. Meanwhile markets rallied on hopes of the stimulus package moving forward. Friday numbers for the three major US indexes follow:

• The DOW jumped 217.52 points Friday to close at 8,280.59. For the week, the Dow rose 3.5 percent.

• The S&P 500 rose 22.75 points Friday, closing to 868.60. It rallied 5.2 percent on the week.

• The NASDAQ gained 45.47 points Friday to finish at 1,591.71. It jumped 7.8 percent from last Friday’s close.

In other world markets:

• The German DAX on Friday climbed 134.14 points to close at 4,644.63.

• The Paris CAC 40 on Friday gained 56.50 points to close at 3,122.79.

• And the London FTSE 100 on Friday rose 62.94 points to close at 4,291.87.

Diane King reports from New York. SOUNDBITE: Anthony Chan, chief economist, JPMorgan Private Wealth Management

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