The Metals:
Gold traded mostly slightly higher in Asia and London and rose over $673 in early New York trade, but it then sold off about $4 between 9AM and 10AM EST, remained near its lows for most of the rest of trade, and ended with a loss of 0.16%. Silver held strong despite gold’s weakness and rose near $13.80 in late morning trade before it fell back off slightly in early afternoon trade, but it still ended with a gain of 0.73%.
Central bank selling of gold and especially Spain’s recent selling grabbed the headlines as it does most Tuesdays, and as usual Blanchard’s Neal Ryan gave us some terrific analysis of it in his note this morning available here.
http://news.goldseek.com/GoldSeek/1181055840.php
...Of particular note is the unprecedented cumulative ECB selling of a massive 170 tonnes in the past 3 months, with 108 tonnes of that selling coming from Spain. Gold sales anywhere near this amount in such a short period of time have crushed the gold price in the past, though gold has traded mostly sideways over this last bout of selling. The question that remains is that when this selling stops or slows, then what will happen to the gold price then? ![]()
4.) Now that ECB bank sales and other central bank gold activity has become the issue of the day
;((we're sure the market will move to something else tomorrow), :D... we think it's time to start asking the hard questions about the gold loan and swap market again. This is the other side of central bank activity that no market analyst will touch with a ten foot pole because it's impossible to quantify and accurately track. If all the recent excitement about central bank sales activity isn't enough to get the average market participant interested in what's happening with the other gold in the central bank vaults, maybe nothing ever will.
If demand remains anywhere near recent levels and price action echoes that of times past, then certainly the price of gold and all things precious appear to be headed higher soon. ![]()