Gold Drops Slightly, Silver Rises, Dow Tops 10,000

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Bullion update ...New York gold futures declined slightly Wednesday after two days of advances, and despite a weakened US dollar and oil prices that pushed above $75 a barrel for the first time in a year. Silver and platinum both climbed 0.4 percent. US stocks gained with the Dow closing above 10,000 for the first time since Oct. 3, 2008.

New York precious metals figures follow:

  • Silver for December delivery gained 6.8 cents to $17.908 an ounce. It ranged from $17.720 to $18.175, which was the highest price since Aug. 2008.

  • Gold for December delivery fell 30 cents to $1,064.70 an ounce. The yellow metal ranged from $1,056.50 to $1,072.

  • January platinum rose $5.90 to $1,366.60 an ounce.

The most notable bullion quotes of the day follow:

 

"Given the scale and pace of recent gains and with gold flirting with overbought territory on the charts, the metal is in much need of consolidation/correction to avoid a more substantial price drop," James Moore, an analyst at TheBullionDesk.com in London, said in a note that was quoted on Bloomberg. "Given the weight of momentum entering the market and outlook for the dollar, it is difficult to be anything but bullish."

"I have my doubts over the sustainability of gold’s price rise," Chintan Karnani, an analyst at Insignia Consultants, was quoted on MarketWatch. "The quicker the rise the sooner will be the chances of a correction. I do not believe that gold prices will sustain the current prices into next week."

"Following the setting of a fresh record at $1.80 above the $1070 mark in overnight trade, gold prices pulled back by a tiny amount in early NY session action,” wrote Jon Nadler, senior analyst at Kitco Metals, Inc. "Once again, the dynamics were mainly dollar-centric as the US currency tried to hang on to the mid-75 zone in the trade-weighted index." [Click to read Nadler’s full commentary.]

 

In London bullion, the benchmark gold price was fixed earlier in the day to $1,059.50 an ounce, which was an increase of $1.75. Silver was at $17.93 an ounce for a 6 cent decline. Platinum remained unchanged at $1,356.00 an ounce.

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.

Oil and gasoline prices

Oil jumped Wednesday "as upbeat earnings reports from U.S. companies lifted stock markets and boosted sentiment in energy trading," wrote Polya Lesova and Moming Zhou of MarketWatch.

 

"The combination of a weak dollar and an equity rally is fueling the rally," Chip Hodge, who oversees a $9 billion natural-resource bond portfolio as senior managing director at MFC Global Investment Management in Boston, was quoted on Bloomberg. "There’s a feeling that we’re past the bottom of the recession and will start to see demand growth next year."

 

New York crude-oil for November delivery rose $1.03, or 1.4 percent, to $75.18 a barrel — the highest level since Oct. 14, 2008.

The national average for unleaded gasoline climbed three-tenths of a cent to $2.481 a gallon, according to AAA fuel data. The price is 1.6 cents higher than last week, 9.1 cents lower than a month back, and 68 cents less than a year ago.

U.S. Stocks

U.S. stocks gained as the "Dow industrials closed above 10,000 Wednesday, ending at the key psychological milestone for the first time in more than a year, following upbeat profit reports from Intel and JPMorgan Chase," wrote Alexandra Twin of CNNMoney.com.

 

"Dow 10,000 may be largely psychological, but with tremendous levels of cash on the sidelines this may still be a call to action for investors," Lawrence Glazer, managing partner at Mayflower Advisors in Boston, was quoted on Reuters.

 

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 144.80 points, or 1.47 percent, to 10,015.86. The S&P 500 Index advanced 18.83 points, or 1.75 percent, to 1,092.02. The Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 32.34 points, or 1.51 percent, to 2,172.23.

Gold, Silver, and Metals: Prices and Commentary – Oct. 14
by Jon Nadler, Kitco Metals Inc.

But Wait, There’s More! Gold Below Spot! Offer Void Where Prohibited…

Good Day,

Following the setting of a fresh record at $1.80 above the $1070 mark in overnight trade, gold prices pulled back by a tiny amount in early NY session action. Once again, the dynamics were mainly dollar-centric as the US currency tried to hang on to the mid-75 zone in the trade-weighted index. Crude oil advanced half a dollar, reaching $74.65 per barrel. This morning’s action in NY thus far shows that gold would be down based on actual selling (by anywhere from 5 to 9 dollars) were it not for the $3 gain it is being offset by, due to dollar weakness – all as shown on the KGX index, now one week old, on this site.

Almost lost in the deafening bullion bull media noise over recent days, were the usual flows of statistical data that give shape to the US economic picture. This morning’s numbers reveal a smaller-than-anticipated decline in US retails sales for September. Taking out car sales (which were a slam-dunk for a big fall following the C-4-C hoopla), there was a 0.5% increase in US retail sales last month.

Calling that level of sales ‘healthy’ may be in order, considering what the expectations (and former numbers) were. However, the Fed’s Mr. Kohn gives us a different alphabet soup this morning, calling not for a "V"-shaped US economic recovery, but one the resembles the letter "U" in a rather extended stretch. Kohn’s comments helped push the greenback to a 14-month nadir against the euro earlier this morning. The anti-dollar bettors continue to bet on rates near zero for eons to come.

A spec play? The MOAB (Mother Of All Bubbles)? Or just an inverse-dollar frenzy phase that will peter out in the same fashion as those in the past – most recently in 1995? Thus far, the most reliable evidence anyone has on hand, is that rumours are in large part shaping the market. Surely, everyone knows by now that "wealthy sources bought a truckload of gold recently and demanded physical delivery of same from a couple of large banks that were unable to come up with the bullion" or that "George Soros bought $473 billion worth of gold while dumping all of his US dollars" or that "OPEC nations have secretly opted to leave the dollar for dead" – This is old news right? Well, dig a bit deeper then, as did DNA:

"Last week, the global currency markets were rattled by the detonation of what some analysts saw as a monetary nuclear bomb of cosmic proportions. A report in a British newspaper claimed sensationally that Gulf oil-producing states were in secret talks with China, Russia, Japan and France to end the pricing of oil in US dollars and move to a basket of currencies.

Such a move, which would tie in with long-nursed concerns about a weakening US dollar and the pile-up of excessive US government debt, would (if confirmed as true) signal the beginning of the end of the dollar’s status as the preferred currency of global trade (or the global ‘reserve currency’). The report was denied by all the principal players, but given these uncertain times, it sounded plausible to many, and the dollar fell in response. Countless other doomsday scenarios for the dollar abound, and not a day passes without some over-the-top hyperbolic pronouncement by ‘dollar bears’ about the ‘coming collapse of the dollar’.

The perception that even the US administration, skating on thin ice economically and politically, seems to favour a weak dollar to rebalance its economy has amplified the bears’ growls. Yet, the conspiracy theories about the imminent erosion of the dollar’s status as reserve currency and the emerging alternatives are wide off the mark and low on economic and realpolitik wisdom. ‘Reserve currencies’ do not come about as a result of political negotiation among a few players, in the way the British newspaper report implied; they come about organically over years, perhaps decades, on the strength and financial depth of the underlying economy, the convenience of using that currency, and the network effect of many others using it.

One economist likens it to using the Windows operating system for your computer; sure, it’s expensive and has bugs, and sure there are freeware alternatives, but it’s more convenient to use Windows because ‘everyone else is using it’. And like Windows, reserve currencies enjoy an ‘incumbency advantage’: unless a new currency can demonstrate that is offers vastly superior benefits, it cannot dislodge the entrenched one. The choice of a reserve currency also comes with an implicit bargain: the underlying economy has to run trade deficits and current account deficits to provide liquidity to the rest of the world.

It must also open itself up to the risk of seeing hostile governments or traders short-sell your currency for political or economic reasons, as is happening with the dollar today. Not everyone wants that responsibility and the headache: just ask China, which is clamouring the loudest for a change from the dollar standard. Most of the ‘dollar bear’ growls you hear today are motivated by power politics or profits. In China’s case, its concerns over the dollar have forced US policymakers to tone down their rhetoric on China’s currency manipulation and its human rights record.

Similarly, the most extreme ‘death to the dollar’ chants come from ‘bullion bulls’ who expect to gain from higher gold prices when the dollar weakens. Every up tick in the price of gold in US dollars is celebrated, despite the fact that against other currencies like the Australian dollar, gold prices have actually fallen over the past six months. Even in India, it’s true that gold prices have appreciated about 45 percent since their recent low in October 2008. But over the same period, the Sensex has returned 70 per cent, which puts the ‘gold rally’ in perspective. All this is not to say the dollar won’t weaken in the short term; it will. And over time, as other economic powers rise and US’ share of the global economy shrinks, other reserve currencies could organically emerge. But the only ones who are profiting from short-term volatility driven by market hysteria of a ‘dollar collapse’ are dollar bears and bullion bulls who are looking to make jackasses of us others."

At last check, gold prices had recovered from lows near $1055 and were once again showing only minor losses of about $2, trading near $1062 per ounce. The complete absence of corrections (save for a minor dip on the 9th) continues to unnerve market observers on both sides of the pond. Analysts at BullionDesk in London, albeit seeing a need to remain bullish so long as dollar selling is the feature of the day, said today that: "Given the scale and pace of recent gains and with gold flirting with overbought territory on the charts, the metal is in much need of consolidation/correction to avoid a more substantial price drop."

Silver climbed four cents higher this morning, trading at $17.82 per ounce. The white metal has had a noticeable flattening out on the 3-day chart, following a one dollar/ one week spike of its own. It has outpaced gold’s returns by at least 2:1 thus far this year. Platinum fell $2 to $1354 and palladium lost $3 to ease to $323 per troy ounce. The noble metals sank following reports that platinum’s global surplus may widen next year, as an increase in mine supplies and recycling outpaces a recovery in demand. Bloomberg reports:

"Next year it will be certainly a surplus again," Peter Ryan said in an interview in Tokyo yesterday. The excess volume could be "a little bit higher" than the 11.3 metric tons estimated for this year, he added. Ryan joined London-based GFMS in 2004 after about 30 years with platinum researcher and refiner Johnson Matthey Plc.

Platinum, used in auto catalysts and jewelry, has gained 45 percent this year as investors bought precious metals as an alternative to the sliding dollar. The metal reached a record $2,301.50 an ounce on March 4, 2008, as power shortages in South Africa reduced output in the largest producer, before tumbling to a five-year low of $744.25 on Oct. 27 amid global financial market turmoil. "Operational difficulties" that cut South African output from 2007 to 2009 are unlikely to recur in 2010 and production will rise from this year’s forecast 183.4 tons as supply becomes available from new mines, Ryan said.

Platinum prices, which have averaged $1,135 an ounce so far this year, may average $1,250 next year, if investment demand expands regardless of fundamentals, Ryan forecast. "At the moment we are trading ahead of fundamentals," he said after a seminar in Tokyo by GFMS. Net investment in the metal through exchange-traded funds will rise to an estimated 8.6 tons this year from 3.2 tons last year, according to Ryan.

Prices of palladium, mainly used in vehicle exhaust systems, may average $300 an ounce next year, compared with $233 so far this year, as the global market stays in deficit following a shortage estimated at 11.3 tons this year, he said. Russia, the world’s largest palladium producer, may sell 40.4 tons of the metal from the state stockpiles this year, compared with 39.8 tons in 2008, Ryan said. The country will continue to sell similar volumes next year, capping the gain in prices, he added. "

Something else that appears to be in surplus mode right about now, is the amount of gold hanging from the hooks of vendors stretching from Dubai to Mumbai. Want to buy gold? Below spot? You actually can. Just book a ticket to exotic locales. Daily News and Analysis reports on the strangest of twist now taking place in the gold biz. And, it is NOT a scam! The merchants need to make a living, folks. Gold demand remains elusive in India, even as the biggest gold-buying related festival of Dhanteras fast approaches. Let’s see if the shoppers will bite – at all:

"The international price of gold may be at its precious highest, $1068.80 (Dh3922) an ounce yesterday, but jewellery retailers are offering major discounts to combat dwindling sales. The Dubai Gold and Jewellery Group, that tracks and sets the price for Dubai markets, yesterday, had 24 carat gold selling for Dh126.50 a gram and 22 carat at Dh118.25 a gram. At souqs and malls across the emirate, the precious metal in its 22 carat form was retailing for much lower than the above benchmark.

"In terms of the per gram value the price of 22 carat gold now ranges anywhere between Dh106 a gram to Dh118 a gram," a gold dealer told Emirates Business. Calculation of the per gram selling price of 22 carat gold involves calculating 92 per cent of the price of prevailing market price and then adding a suitable premium. It’s primarily the premium that traders are willing to concede to bring back the customers, market sources said.

"Low retail demand of gold is forcing jewellers to dispose their gold at prices lower than the prevailing market rates," said Sajith Kumar PK, CEO of JRG International Brokerage, DMCC. The retailers are not selling at a loss though. Sajith explains that gold being disposed at a "discount" now was bought months earlier at much lower prices.

Jeffrey Rhodes, CEO of INTL Commodities, warned that prices can fall sharply if all "speculators head for the exit doors at the same time". Gold could drop to a low of $920 an ounce in the medium term, Sajith said. Gold yesterday rose to a record in New York and London on speculation that a weakening dollar and faster inflation will boost the appeal of precious metals. Futures reached $1,069.70 an ounce in New York, while spot gold climbed to $1,068.63 in London."

And thus the market goes. Rumour, opinion, emotion, proclamations.

May we live in interesting times is no longer a ‘may’…

PS – Meet Kitco Metals in Toronto! Attend The World MoneyShow Toronto, October 20-22, 2009, at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre and meet Kitco Metals representatives and other world-renowned investment and trading experts who will share their in-depth knowledge and specific advice that will help you manage your assets confidently and profitably in 2009 and beyond! Register FREE Today!

Jon Nadler
Senior Analyst
Kitco Bullion Dealers Montreal
 
Kitco Metals Inc.
North America

 

Websites: www.kitco.com and www.kitco.cn
Blog: http://www.kitco.com/ind/index.html#nadler

Check out additional market resources at Live Spots, the Silver Coin Melt Calculator, and the Inflation Calculator.

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