Monday, February 28, 2005

Top Australian Treasury Advisor Warns of Dollar Collapse

A top Australian treasury official is warning of a global financial crisis if there is a U.S. dollar and government bond sell off.

Treasury Secretary Ken Henry compared the flood of money pouring into the United States to support its budget and current account deficits to the stock market's dot-com bubble in the late 1990s.

If money stops pouring into the United States, it would hit the U.S. economy and
ramifications would also hit all other parts of the world economy, Henry said.

Henry is one of many voices warning about a possible dollar collapse.

Saturday, February 26, 2005

Gold Mining Output Lowest in 60 years

The World Gold Council annual report said, gold mining supply fell 13% in 2004 compared to 2003 recording the sharpest fall in gold supply since the 1940s.
World gold mining production was 2,478 tonnes in 2004.

“De-hedging was high throughout 2004, 59% higher than in 2003,” the WGC said. Scrap supply was 14% lower in the fourth quarter“, continuing the trend evident in the first three quarters of the year,” the WGC said.

Tuesday, February 22, 2005

Gold Price higher as dollar plumments

The gold price soared past the $430 price barrier on Tuesday as the US Dollar plummeted on worries central banks were diversifying from U.S. dollar assets.

"I think gold has found the catalyst it needs to break through this $428-32 resistance band and can now look to target $440," analyst James Moore of TheBullionDesk.com said.

The US dollar plummeted after South Korea's central bank said on Monday it planned to diversify its currency reserves, which are the world's fourth largest, into a greater variety of currencies.

Gold has reverted to its normal gold fundamentals, having shaken off bearish sentiment from the possibility of IMF gold sales or revaluation.

Thursday, February 17, 2005

Gold Price up in London - Dollar Down against the Euro

The gold price rose in London as the Dollar fell for the fourth day against the Euro.

The Dollar dropped as some traders bet that the interest-rate gap between the U.S. and Europe won't widen enough to extend the currency's 3.8 percent rally this year.

Read more here.

Source: Bloomberg, Latin America.

Tuesday, February 15, 2005

Gold Traders await US Trade Data and Greenspan

The gold price fell from a two-week high in London as gold traders await a report that may show purchases of U.S. securities by overseas investors slowed in December and this weeks testimony to Congress by Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan.

The gold price rose 3.2 percent in previous four sessions as the dollar weakened and Asian traders returned to work following Chinese New Year celebrations. The dollar traded near a one-week low against the euro and the yen today.

Foreign investors may have bought a net $55 billion in U.S. financial assets in December, down from November's five-month high of $81 billion, said Steve Pearson, chief currency strategist in London at HBOS Plc.

A drop will highlight that the U.S. has failed to lure enough overseas capital to offset a record current-account deficit and maintain the dollar's value.

Source: Bloomberg.com Latin America. Danielle Rossingh

Read more here.

Thursday, February 10, 2005

12 U.S. Senators oppose IMF Gold sales

12 senators from mainly U.S. mining states have told U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow to oppose the IMF proposal to sell gold to pay for debt relief, indicating the plan will face powerful congressional opposition.

They have stated that the plan would hurt gold producers and cause job losses, including in impoverished countries.

Source: Reuters
Read more here.

Wednesday, February 09, 2005

Gold Futures Rise on Speculation of Near-Record U.S. Trade Gap

Feb. 10 (Bloomberg) -- Gold futures rose for the second day in six amid speculation a report today may show the U.S. trade deficit was the second-highest on record, eroding the value of the dollar and boosting the metal's appeal as an alternative.

Read more here.

Source: Bloomberg By Matt Chambers.

Europe gold price steadies as dollar dips

LONDON (Reuters) - Gold steadied itself in Europe on Wednesday after the dollar stalled and helped bullion rally from near-four-month lows in the previous session

Read more here.

Source: Reuters

Soft gold prices, demand squeeze gold supplies in India

BOMBAY (Reuters) - A sharp drop in gold prices have boosted demand in India, the world's largest market, and have caused a supply crunch, traders said on Wednesday.

The delivery time has risen to more than a week, compared with the normal two days and some agencies have raised their premiums on world prices, they said.

India, which buys more than two-thirds of its annual demand of 700 to 800 tonnes a year, only allows about two dozen agencies -- mainly banks and state-run trading houses -- to import gold.

Read more here.

Source: Reuters By Atul Prakash

Tuesday, February 08, 2005

IMF Gold Sales Likelyhood and Effect on the Gold Price.

...Any such move will require agreement among the IMF's biggest shareholders, including large gold producers Canada, Australia and South Africa, and the United States, which looks likely to oppose the proposals.

...The United States holds the world's largest bullion stockpile and gold sales would need the consent of Congress, which together with gold producers opposed gold sales in 1999.

...Martin Murenbeeld, a Canadian-based gold analyst, said the IMF had the option to bypass the market, by selling to buyers such as central banks, which would not affect trading.

He said countries like Japan and China, with their large U.S. currency reserves, could swallow the IMF's gold stocks "without so much as a hiccup."

"It is not clear the IMF will choose to sell gold," he said. "We'd put the probability of it at less than 25 percent. If it did sell, I think it would do so under the auspices of the...second central bank agreement on gold."

Read more here.

Source: Reuters By Lesley Wroughton

Gold Price Declines to Lowest in Almost Four Months as Dollar Gains

Feb. 8 (Bloomberg) -- Gold prices in New York fell to the lowest in almost four months as a gain in the value of the dollar eroded the appeal of the metal as an alternative against U.S. stocks and bonds.

Gold, sold in dollars, dropped for the seventh session in eight as the U.S. currency rose against the euro and the yen. The dollar climbed to the highest in almost two months against the yen today after Federal Reserve Governor Susan Bies said the U.S is attracting a ``tremendous amount'' of investment.

Read more here.

Source: Bloomberg By Choy Leng Yeong

Monday, February 07, 2005

Significant increase in Dubai gold trade

The Dubai Gold Price is available at the link below:

Dubai Gold Price

Dubai's consumption rose by 10% to 100 tonnes, despite the 12% increase in the year-on-year average price, as consumers demonstrated their belief in gold as an effective investment product.

Colin Griffith, DMCC's Executive Director for Gold and Precious Metals, explained the influencers of this increase 'The substantial increase in overall trade and values is due to a number of factors, including higher international gold prices, increase in business flows – particularly scrap refining and further growth of gold trade with India. The figures confirm Dubai's status as a leading global hub for gold and the city's excellent spread of business partners, trading with 91 countries worldwide, the largest of these being the India, Switzerland, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Italy, Pakistan, Malaysia and the United Kingdom.'

These impressive figures are expected to increase during the next few years due to the additional trade of kilo bars through the soon to be launched Dubai Gold & Commodities Exchange (DGCX).

Read more here.

Source: ameinfo.com By Christine H. Andersen

Gold market wary of big IMF sales but demand remains

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Gold sales by the International Monetary Fund for third-world debt relief could weaken bullion prices over the longer run but any dip could be temporary because of strong demand at lower price levels from Asian buyers.

Ministers from the Group of Seven industrialized nations said over the weekend the IMF would consider using its gold reserves to cut the debt of the world's poorest nations. The fund is the world's third-largest gold holder with reserves of around 3,217 tonnes.

Gold, which fell $1 an ounce on Friday to 415.20 in New York on talk of the IMF gold sales, dipped to a near-four-month low of $413.50 an ounce in Asia on Monday before recovering to around $414.50.

Yukuji Sonoda, a precious metals analyst at Daiichi Commodities in Tokyo, believes gold is nearing its bottom at around $410 and would soon rebound because of buying interest from India, the world's largest gold consumer.

"The market is over reacting. The outcome of the G7 meeting is not surprising," said Sonoda. "End-users in Japan, China and also India are very comfortable with this price level," he added.


Read more here.

Source: Reuters By Lewa Pardomuan

Sunday, February 06, 2005

US budget deficit

Some the world's major central bankers warned the United States yesterday that the international community could be running out of patience with the massive U.S. budget and trade deficits that have pushed the dollar lower and increased the cost of their exports in America.

Read more here.

Source: newsfromrussia.com By JB

IMF looks at gold sale options for debt relief

The International Monetary Fund is preparing a report on the potential
sale of a portion of its gold reserves in a move that would help fund debt
relief for poor countries but could unsettle the markets by threatening a
drop in the price of gold.

Read more here.

Source: FT.com By Andrew Balls, Chris Giles and Scheherazade Daneshkhu

Saturday, February 05, 2005

Gold languishes on IMF debt deal fears

Gold prices were close to five-month lows this week after it emerged that some of the International Monetary Fund's vast gold reserves might be sold to help pay third-world debt.

Read more here.

Source: FT.com By Kevin Morriso