Fri May 10 2013
U.S. gold futures slipped more than
1 percent on Friday after the dollar rose against the euro on brightening job
prospects in the world’s largest economy, reducing bullion’s appeal as an
alternative investment. Cash gold also fell, heading for its first weekly drop
in three, after U.S. data showed new claims for jobless aid fell last week to
the lowest level in more than five years, dampening speculation the Federal
Reserve may boost monetary stimulus and hurting bullion’s appeal as a hedge
against inflation.
U.S. gold futures for June
delivery hit a session low of $1,452.30 an ounce and stood at $1,453.80 by 0050
GMT, down $14.80. The contract was also heading for its first weekly fall in
three but a slight increase in exchange-traded holdings could signal a change
in sentiment. “A stronger dollar has put pressure on gold prices. But this morning,
we saw that gold ETFs added some numbers. This is like the first time in the
last 50 days,” Yuichi Ikemizu, branch manager for Standard Bank in Tokyo.
“I guess this could be a very
good sign for gold. Maybe we have hit the bottom. If selling on the ETFs has
stopped, then gold naturally will go up.”
Spot gold
was at $1,454.76, down $2.94.
Cash and
U.S. gold futures sank to around $1,321 on April 16, their lowest in over two
years, after worries about central bank sales and a drop below $1,500 led to a
sell-off that stunned investors, prompting them to slash ETF holdings. SPDR
Gold Trust, the world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its
holdings rose 0.26 percent to 1,054.18 tons on Thursday from 1051.47 tons on
Wednesday. But the holdings were still
near 4-year lows.
Asian shares eased on Friday,
taking their cues from global equities which took a breather from recent
rallies overnight, while the euro steadied against the dollar after dropping to
$1.3010 on EBS on Thursday, its lowest since April 29.
Japanese equities soared to
fresh five-year highs as the dollar’s break above the symbolic 100 yen level
underpinned sentiment. A falling yen lifted gold futures on Tokyo
Commodity Exchange, with the most active contract, currently April 2014 rising
to its highest since mid-April.
Precious metals prices 0050 GMT
Metal
|
Last |
Change |
Pct chg |
YTD pct chg |
Volume |
|
Spot Gold |
1454.76 |
-2.94 |
-0.2 |
-13.12 |
|
|
Spot Silver |
23.62 |
-0.04 |
-0.17 |
-21.99 |
|
|
Spot Platinum |
1499.5 |
-2.5 |
-0.17 |
-2.31 |
|
|
Spot Palladium |
703.47 |
-0.53 |
-0.08 |
1.66 |
|
|
COMEX GOLD JUN3 |
1453.8 |
-14.8 |
-1.01 |
-13.25 |
14709 |
|
COMEX SILVER JUL3 |
23.59 |
-0.33 |
-1.36 |
-21.98 |
2501 |
|
Euro/Dollar |
1.3025 |
|
|
|
|
|
Dollar/Yen |
100.82 |
|
|
|
|
COMEX gold and silver contracts show the most active months
Source: Reuters