No Money? No Sex.

Good Morning,

Monday’s early trading action did not start off on a positive note for the euro despite weekend promises by the G-7 leaders to keep stimulus programmes alive, whilst mounting regional debt problems threaten to undermine the very existence of the common currency. The US dollar continued to receive further safe-haven bids from worried investors and climbed to 80.40 on the trade-weighted index while the euro fell to 1.364 and basically met the forecasts that seemed rather outlandish as recently as seventy days ago.

Gold prices staged an attempt at recovering to above the $1070 mark during the overnight hours (and actually managed a rise to $1074), aided by a bit of bargain hunting in the overseas markets and by perceptions that albeit trouble keeps brewing for the euro (there is now emergent talk of a possible rate cut – courtesy of a very fretful ECB), its technical picture is as oversold as it has been in a couple of years. Thus, the tug of war in which gold is currently caught is keeping the action tense and indecisive. Read the rest of this entry »

Precious metals tumbled this week as the dollar rallied to an 8-month high against the euro. The currency fell on worries over European fiscal problems, according to accounts, with debt management in Greece, Spain and Portugal taking center stage. When the greenback climbs, gold general falls while silver and platinum usually track immediately behind.

New York crude oil tumbled for a fourth consecutive week, declining 2.3 percent this week after an 8 percent fall in January.

U.S., German, French and London stocks will need to reverse course to climb out of a shallow hole they fell into in starting this month. US stocks tried on Friday, jumping late in the final hour to dramatically erase earlier losses and end a very volatile week in trading.

In London Fix bullion weekly prices, gold fell $20.50, or 1.9 percent, to $1,058.00 an ounce. Silver plummeted $1.12, or 6.9 percent, to $15.17 an ounce. Platinum settled at $1,475.00 an ounce, declining $37.00, or 2.4 percent.

"The dollar just keeps gaining momentum," Tom Schweer, a senior market strategist at LaSalle Futures Group Inc. in Chicago said on Bloomberg. "Gold could fall another $20 to $40 before people start to load up again."

In weekly New York metals prices, April gold lost $31.00, or 2.9 percent, to end at $1,052.80 an ounce. Silver for March delivery ended at $14.83 an ounce, plunging $1.36, or 8.4 percent. April platinum declined $30.90, or 2.1 percent, to close at $1,475.10 an ounce. Read the rest of this entry »

Whack-A-Mole, The European Edition

Good Morning,

Gold’s price woes mounted overnight, with prices cratering some $16 further after Thursday’s near $50 freefall. Spot gold drew close to the $1047 per ounce mark, following its worst single-day rout in 16 months. Risk appetite has been placed in a deep freeze on the heels of yesterday’s poor US jobs report. Adding to trouble in the commodities sector is the surge in euro-oriented jitters engendered by the ‘whack-a-mole’ patterns of debt troubles that continue to spring up over various parts of the Old World.

In fact, those debt troubles and the attendant flight from risk may be at the centre of yesterday’s core metals meltdown, while the US jobs data probably played a lesser part. Clearly, the US dollar ought to have slipped on the labour statistics, as perceptions that the Fed would keep certain spigots open for a while longer as a result thereof, should have resulted in selling the currency (and perhaps buying gold). Read the rest of this entry »

Gold, other metals, oil and stocks all tumbled on Thursday, reeling as the euro fell to an eight-month low against the US dollar.

Worries over European countries’ debt, the pace of the economic recovery and higher than expected unemployment claims were just some of the factors cited for the greenback’s strength, and a drive toward safer investments.

By day’s close, gold had fallen the most since 2008, oil retreated by the biggest margin since late July and US stocks suffered their worst day in more than three months.

New York precious metal figures follow:

• Gold for April delivery plunged $49.00, or 4.4 percent, to $1,063.00 an ounce. It ranged from $1,059.00 to $1,112.00.

• Silver for March delivery plummeted 96.7 cents, or 5.9 percent, to close at $15.350 an ounce. It ranged from $15.190 to $16.415.

• April platinum tumbled $60.90, or 3.9 percent, to end at $1,515.30 an ounce. It ranged from $1,504.60 to $1,573.30.

In PM London bullion, the benchmark gold price was fixed earlier in the North American day to $1,083.25 an ounce, which was a decline of $32.00 from Wednesday. Silver fell 66 cents to $16.130 an ounce. Platinum was settled at $1,083.25 an ounce for a loss of $29.00. Read the rest of this entry »

New York gold futures fell on Wednesday and for the first time this week as the U.S. dollar rallied against other world currencies. Commodities as group moved opposite of the greenback, as silver declined 2.5 percent, platinum fell 0.2 percent and crude oil retreated 0.2 percent.

US stocks ended mixed after a two-day rally. The tech-laden Nasdaq rose slightly while the Dow and S&P declined 0.26 percent and 0.55 percent, respectively.

New York precious metal figures follow:

• Gold for April delivery finished down $6.00, or 0.5 percent, to $1,112.00 an ounce. It ranged from $1,107.50 to $1,126.40.

• Silver for March fell 42.6 cents to close at $16.317 an ounce. It ranged from $16.280 to $16.950.

• April platinum lost $2.60 to end at $1,576.20 an ounce. It ranged from $1,567.20 to $1,594.00.

In PM London bullion, the benchmark gold price was fixed earlier in the North American day to $1,115.25 an ounce, which was an increase of $4.25 from Tuesday. Silver rose a penny to $16.790 an ounce. Platinum was settled at $1,578.00 an ounce for a gain of $23.00. Read the rest of this entry »

Carry On

Good Morning,

Overnight gains continued in gold, courtesy of manifest risk appetite and additional consolidation in the US dollar. Highs near $1125 were seen, albeit the advance softened by the time the NY session got underway this morning. Spec funds are back in the market, emboldened by the successful breach of the $1117 mark yesterday, and are trying once again to wrest the metal away from the bears who almost got going in earnest near the $1070 area.

Although the greenback gave up some additional ground on the trade-weighted index (last seen at just under the 79 level), it did not -as yet- allow for a recapture of the 1.40 level by the euro. The common currency continues to be plagued by worries about Greece, albeit today’s advance took place because the European Commission approved that country’s austerity plan. The IMF still has to express its support for said deficit-slashing plan. Read the rest of this entry »

New York gold futures jumped on Tuesday, adding to what has turned out to be the biggest two-day rally in nearly three months. The yellow metal has surged 3.2 percent since Friday, as the US dollar continued falling against other world currencies.

Other commodities marked daily gains as well, with silver up 0.5 percent, platinum soaring 2.6 percent and crude oil surging nearly 4 percent.

US stocks also rallied for a second straight session, with the Dow posting triple-digit gains today and on Monday.

New York precious metal figures follow:

• Gold for April delivery ended up $13.00 or 1.2 percent to $1,118.00 an ounce. It ranged from $1,099.50 to $1,119.90.

• Silver for March rose 8.3 cents to finish at $16.743 an ounce. It ranged from $16.555 to $16.810.

• April platinum surged $39.50 to close at $1,578.80 an ounce. It ranged from $1,534.50 to $1,579.00.

In PM London bullion, the benchmark gold price was fixed earlier in the North American day to $1,111.00 an ounce, which was an increase of $24.50 from Monday. Silver jumped 55 cents to $16.780 an ounce. Platinum was settled at $1,555.00 an ounce for a gain of $35.00. Read the rest of this entry »

When The Truth Is Found…

Good Morning,

The US dollar backed away slightly from the 79.50 level on the trade-weighted index and gold prices enjoyed a bit of an overnight respite from their two week-long fall as a result. Local buying ahead of the Chinese Lunar New Year added to bullion’s ability to orbit near and maintain itself just above the $1080 price zone, but trading sentiment remained apprehensive following the second month of losses in value.

Gold futures ended lower on Friday, after having touched a one-month low, due to the dollar-boosting effects of strong US economic data and jitters surrounding the US President’s proposal to limit bank risk-taking, and trading operations, that include commodities.

Questions surrounding the yellow metals’ price prospects continue to surface, now that the ebb of physical demand in seasonal terms is nearly here, and given the continued outflows from exchange-traded vehicles. GoldEssential.com analysts summed up the current conditions in the market as follows, this morning: Read the rest of this entry »

Bullion prices fell this week, with gold and silver marking a second consecutive monthly decline in both New York and London. Gold’s fall has been driven significantly by a rising US dollar, which has climbed 2 percent against other world currencies in January. The yellow metal normally moves in the opposite direction of the greenback.

New York crude oil tumbled for a third straight week, and prices have plunged more than 8 percent this month. The dollar’s strength has also been a factor in oil’s negative direction, along with concerns over future demand.

US and European stocks stocks ended lower for the week and the month. The major US indexes fell between 3.5 and 5.4 percent in January.

For London Fix January bullion prices, gold fell 2.3 percent, silver declined 4.1 percent and platinum ended down 3.1 percent.

Gold on Friday was fixed at $1,078.50 an ounce, falling $5.50 or 0.5 percent for the week. Silver ended at $16.29 an ounce, for a weekly loss of 99 cents or 5.7 percent. Platinum was settled at $1,512.00 an ounce, losing $28.00 or 1.8 percent since last Friday.

For New York metals monthly prices for January, gold declined 1.1 percent, silver lost 3.9 percent and platinum retreated 3.2 percent.

Gold for April delivery ended at $1,083.80 for a weekly loss of $5.90 or 0.5 percent. Silver futures for March delivery ended at $16.190 an ounce, falling 74 cents or 4.4 percent on the week. Platinum for April delivery closed to $1,506.00, losing $38.50 or 2.5 percent. Read the rest of this entry »

G(reat) Domestic Product. Not So Great Fundametals

Good Morning,

Gold was still headed for its second monthly drop this morning, as the US dollar’s robust gains kept a lid on the enthusiasm (and manifest bets) that were all the rage in the opening week of this year. The greenback took out the 79 level on the trade-weighted index this morning and albeit some of its latest gains may appear overdone for the moment, the lack of firmness in its rivals continues to make for attractive bets for currency and commodity market speculators.

The final session of the final January trading day in New York opened with a $1.50 loss in the yellow metal, which was quoted at $1083.90 per ounce. Gold traded in a band of from $1078 to $1088 overnight, as few additional physical buyers (other than pre-Chinese New Year buyers) emerged to take advantage of yesterday’s further significant dip. Today’s GDP numbers may yet aim gold back towards yesterday’s lows. Read the rest of this entry »