"Is the end in sight? <<But Friday COMEX gold opened interest had jumped to 199,469 contracts, its highest level since February, and analysts noted open interest above 200,000 contracts has in the past indicated a top or bottom in gold prices is near. >>
NY precious metals mixed midday, gold off, PGMs up
NEW YORK, July 1 (Reuter) - COMEX and NYMEX precious metals futures were mixed midday Tuesday, with gold testing news four year lows, but platinum group metals (PGMs) remained higher in the absence of Russian metal supplies.
``Gold is lower but doing nothing near the August contract lows at $334.60 seen Monday,'' Pell Brothers COMEX floor trader Don Tierney said.
``With open interest so high in gold, it may be that just about everybody who wants to be short is already short, and few parties want to add short positions ahead of the holiday weekend,'' he said.
COMEX is closed Friday for the U.S. Independence Day holiday on July 4.
COMEX August gold was down 50 cents at $334.80 an ounce midday on moderate volume of around 20,000 lots.
Open interest fell 5,128 lots Monday to 194,341 contracts, in what traders said was a combination of final long liquidation and minor fund shortcovering.
But Friday COMEX gold opened interest had jumped to 199,469 contracts, its highest level since February, and analysts noted open interest above 200,000 contracts has in the past indicated a top or bottom in gold prices is near.
The latest slide has again been led by commodity fund selling, while investors have been driven away from precious metals investments by a strong U.S. stockmarket, a strong U.S. dollar and U.S. CPI inflation falling to a 10 year low.
In U.S. economic news Tuesday, the June National Association of Purchasing Managers (NAPM) index was reported at 55.7, lower than the 56.4 percent expected, suggesting the economic growth may not be high enough to prompt an interest rate rise by the U.S. Federal Reserve at its two-day FOMC meeting Tuesday and Wednesday this week.
In the bullion market, spot gold was quoted $333.30/80 midday, compared to the London Tuesday afternoon fix at $333.70.
At the London Tuesday morning fix gold saw a fresh four year low at $336.0 an ounce, compared to the New York close Monday at $333.70/20.
COMEX September silver was up 3.2 cents at $4.680 an ounce, recovering some ground, after slumping to contract lows Monday on a breakout of the $4.70-4.90 range of the past two months.
Meanwhile, NYMEX October platinum was up $5.20 at $418.00 an ounce, and NYMEX September palladium was up $1.10 an ounce at $176.00.
Russian officials had earlier indicated Russian exports of PGMs would resume in late June, but Russian spot market sales have not been noted and no metal deliveries have been reported, traders said.
Russia supplies about 60 pct of the world's palladium and 20 pct of its platinum, and exports have been suspended since December 1996, pushing spot prices and forward rates sharply higher this year.
In the physical market, one month platinum lease rates were still around 60 pct Tuesday, while one month palladium rates were around 90 pct. |
