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Gold/Mining/Energy : Precious and Base Metal Investing -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Rocket Red who wrote (12227)	6/10/2003 11:37:52 PM
From: Rocket Red	Respond to of 39344

COMEX gold tumbles to 4-week low, funds liquidate Tuesday June 10, 3:08 pm ET NEW YORK, June 10 (Reuters) - COMEX gold fell to a four-week low Tuesday as speculators used a firmer dollar and U.S. stock market as an excuse to liquidate stale long positions and topple gold out of a two-week trading range. ADVERTISEMENT "It looks like some fund complex decided things were a bit overpriced," said George Gero, senior vice president of investments at Legg Mason Wood Walker. After a 3 percent fall, August gold (0#GC:) bottomed at $352.00 an ounce, its lowest price since May 14, as funds threw in the towel on bets that gold would continue to rally. It closed $9.80 lower at $352.80, down from a high at $362.90. The contract is down $23, or 6 percent, from the 15-week high on May 27 at $375.80. Estimated volume was quite high at 86,000 contracts. It took two bouts of selling, one overnight and another in New York, to crack the recent low of $359.40, where pre-placed stop-loss sell orders then hastened the decline. Spot gold (XAU=) closed at $351.90/2.40, down from the close at $361.60/2.10 and London's late fix at $354.25. "Its starting to flow; it's not a huge one-way street as of yet," said James Pogoda, a vice president of precious metals at Mitsubishi International Corp. "It's not disorderly, but it's lost significant amounts the last few days." The Dow Jones industrial average was up 15 points in late trade, falling back slightly after reclaiming the 9,000 level after Monday's shakeout. The dollar rose against the euro (EUR=), which was last at $1.1680/84, compared with $1.1716/20 late Monday. The euro's rally to a lifetime high a fortnight ago made dollar-priced bullion look cheaper in Europe and sucked investors into gold. That left the COMEX extremely lopsided. Last week, funds were net long 85,047 contracts, a record bet on further gains. It far exceeded the 66,000-lot noncommercial long from gold's February rally to six-year highs near $390. "(The selling) seemed to be around the market. If you look at the build up of fund positions on the COMEX, this was a day to sell. It was just liquidation by funds," said George Parrill, vice president at bullion dealer ScotiaMocatta. Other factors have taken the shine off safe-haven gold. Washington is trying to capitalize on its combat victory in Iraq to push for peace between Israelis and Palestinians.