Ein guter Grund Gold und insbesondere Silber zu "kalmieren"!
NY gold slips off 8-mo. high, eyes on dlr, $66 oil
Fri Aug 12, 2005 09:56 AM ET
NEW YORK, Aug 12 (Reuters) - U.S. gold futures opened at their highest level in eight months on Friday before backing down a bit, as dollar weakness and record crude prices attracted investors to alternatives like the precious metals.
A 6.1 percent rise in the U.S. trade deficit in June after COMEX gold opened prompted a flash of buying in gold as the dollar briefly eased, but a lack of follow-through and some long liquidation then pushed the metal futures lower.
Prices were gyrating as currency values fluctuated wildly over the last day and the trade data and $66 crude oil largely have been fueling the heavy turnover in the yellow metal.
"This is just profit-taking and a lack of bids," a desk trader at an international bank in New York said. "We went up really quickly and a little correction is necessary."
By 9:42 a.m. EDT, gold for December delivery (GCZ5: Quote, Profile, Research) on the New York Mercantile Exchange was up $1.40 at $452.30 an ounce, patrolling a range of $449.10 to $455.30.
The day's high, hit during overnight NYMEX ACCESS electronic trading, was the priciest for futures on a spot continuation basis since December 2004, when the active contract neared $460.
The U.S. trade gap widened to $58.82 billion in June, from $55.43 billion previously, and above forecasts for a rise to $57.3 billion. Stronger oil prices that month boosted imports and a firm dollar hurt demand for U.S. exports.
As the dollar recovered on short covering, the euro last was down at $1.2417, below an earlier 2-1/2-month high at $1.2496. A firm dollar tends to weigh on gold because the U.S. currency-priced metal gets cheaper for non-U.S. buyers.
U.S. light crude surged to its highest on record at $66.16 a barrel on Friday amid robust global demand and declining U.S. gasoline stocks.
Gold often benefits from rising oil prices as the prospect of inflation prompts some investors use gold as a hedge.
"(Gold) traders will continue to monitor the funds with oil and the dollar continuing to lend direction," said analyst James Moore at TheBullionDesk.com.
Moore said that a test of last December's 16-year high in spot gold at $456.75 looked "quite likely" in the coming week, though the market technically was overbought and probably primed for some consolidation at this point.
After spot gold scaled an eight-month peak at $449.30 an ounce earlier, it edged to $443.60/444.40, compared with Thursday's New York late quote at $445.30/446.10. Friday's early fix in London was at $447.25.
In silver, COMEX September futures (SIU5: Quote, Profile, Research) tumbled 7.3 cents to $7.11 an ounce, pressured by profit taking in gold. The range ran from a one-week high at $7.255 to 7.065. Spot silver dipped to $7.08/11, from $7.15/18 Thursday.
In the NYMEX metals, October platinum (PLV5: Quote, Profile, Research) shed $2.70 to hold at $917 an ounce. Spot platinum brought $913/918 an ounce, off from a 15-month high at $923.
September palladium (PAU5: Quote, Profile, Research) was unchanged at $188.50 an ounce. Spot was worth $186/190.
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