Gold extends gains as Greece, China risks damp U.S. rate outlook
By Bloomberg
Gold extended a rise from a three-month low on speculation the Federal Reserve may push back interest-rate increases amid economic risks from China and Greece. Silver, platinum and palladium advanced.
Bullion for immediate delivery rose as much as 0.3 percent to $1,162.87 an ounce and traded at $1,161.03 at 11:42 a.m. in Singapore, according to Bloomberg generic pricing. While the metal’s rebounded from $1,147.36 on Wednesday, the lowest level since March 18, it remains 0.7 percent lower this week.
Gold fell 2 percent this year on prospects for higher U.S. borrowing costs, which boosted the dollar and hurt the metal’s allure. Minutes of the Federal Reserve’s June meeting, published Wednesday, indicated officials thought that tighter monetary policy was warranted, despite concern over risks from abroad. Investors will get further clues on the central bank’s outlook when Chair Janet Yellen speaks on Friday.
“An easing of policy-tightening concerns would be theoretically viewed as gold positive,” James Steel, an analyst at HSBC Securities (USA) Inc., wrote in a note. The bank does “not expect a rate hike until December 2015.”
Greece submitted a proposal seeking a three-year bailout loan of at least 53.5 billion euros ($59.2 billion) in return for reforms and spending cuts similar to those demanded by creditors. It is set to be discussed at a summit of European leaders on Sunday to determine whether the country will get a new bailout, or be forced to leave the single currency.
Chinese stocks rallied on Friday, sending the benchmark index toward its biggest two-day jump since 2008, after measures by policy makers to stem a rout. The country’s stock slump had spurred losses in global equities and commodities.
Gold futures for delivery in August rose 0.1 percent to $1,159.50 an ounce on the Comex in New York. Bullion of 99.99 percent purity lost as much as 0.4 percent to 231.75 yuan a gram ($1,161.04 an ounce) on the Shanghai Gold Exchange before trading at 232.49 yuan.
Silver for immediate delivery climbed 0.4 percent to $15.4751 an ounce, increasing for a third day to pare weekly loss. While platinum gained 0.5 percent to $1,030.15 an ounce, it’s still set for a 4.9 percent loss this week. The metal sank to $1,010.26 on Wednesday, a six-year low.
Palladium jumped 1.1 percent to $645.95 an ounce after declining 2.5 percent on Thursday. It’s 5.8 percent lower this week, set for the biggest weekly drop since September.
Here we are to serve you with news right now. It does not cost much, but worth your attention.
Choose to support open, independent, quality journalism and subscribe on a monthly basis.
By subscribing to our online newspaper, you can have full digital access to all news, analysis, and much more.
You can also follow AzerNEWS on Twitter @AzerNewsAz or Facebook @AzerNewsNewspaper
Thank you!