Hey Guys
When economies slow down, the price of gold rises, when they speed up and inflation becomes a concern, gold rises!
Its just broken above a technical barrier $1540 per ounce, just as Signature Metals is on the cusp of announcing their Maiden Gold Pour at Konongo!
Cheers Nectar
Gold jumps as US economic uncertainty kills risk appetite
Tatyana Shumsky
From: Dow Jones Newswires
June 04, 2011 12:04PM
GOLD prices pushed higher on weak US employment data and renewed investor concerns about a 'double-dip' recession in the US.
The most actively traded contract, for August delivery, settled up $US9.70, or 0.6 per cent, at $US1542.40 a troy ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
June-delivery gold gained $US9.70 (0.6 per cent), to settle at $US1541.70 a troy ounce.
Non-farm payrolls rose by 54,000 in May, the Labour Department said. The number fell well short of the 160,000 increase that economists had forecast and points to a dramatic slowdown in hiring by US companies.
The jobless rate, obtained from a separate survey, rose to 9.1 per cent in May from 9 per cent in April.
June gold futures jumped to a high of $US1546.30 a troy ounce on the report, as investors rushed to purchase the safe-haven asset.
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"You're seeing a general risk-aversion trade going on today based on these (employment) numbers," said Matt Zeman, head of trading at Kingsview Financial. "People are uncertain about the economy and are wondering where the help is going to come from."
Gold is considered a store of value amid economic uncertainty and a hedge against financial risks, with investor appetite often growing stronger as economic sentiment sours.
"The news was negative enough to keep people looking at gold and certainly fearful of stocks," said Scott Meyers, senior trading analyst at Pioneer Futures.
The latest employment data also raised questions about the future of the US economy. A stream of soft economic data, including car sales and manufacturing orders earlier this week, comes as the Federal Reserve winds down its fiscal stimulus program, commonly known as QE2, which supported economic activity since its launch in November.
"People are uncertain about the economy and with QE2 coming to an end, people are wondering where the help is going to come from," Mr Zeman said.
Investors shed risky assets like stocks and commodities on expectations of slower US growth, with many turning to the gold market in search of a safe haven.
"Our tactical view on commodities for the next three months is that base metals and crude oil will struggle to rally, and these things should be sold into rallies, and we think gold should be a buy on dips because final demand (for commodities) is weak and we don't see it picking up," said Walter de Wet, head of commodity strategy at Standard Bank in London.
Silver futures ended little changed after falling on the employment news, as the precious metal has wide industrial applications and physical demand can soften as the economy slows.
Silver for July delivery, the most actively traded contract, settled down US1.1c at $US36.191 a troy ounce.
Nymex palladium for September delivery, the most actively traded contract, ended up $US15 (2 per cent) at $US785.40 a troy ounce.
Platinum for July delivery, the most actively traded contract, settled up $US5.90 (0.3 per cent) at $US1823.70 a troy ounce.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/mining-energy/gold-jumps-as-us-economic-uncertainty-kills-risk-appetite/story-e6frg9do-1226069160526
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