Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Gold/Mining/Energy : Gold Price Monitor -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Alex who wrote (2488)	10/27/1997 8:14:00 AM
From: Richnorth	Respond to of 116834

(Pasted from bloomberg.com) Swiss Panel Urges Selling Half of Gold Reserves; Prices Plummet By Theresa Waldrop and Reto Gregori Bern: A Swiss government panel said the nation's central bank should sell more than half of its gold reserves -- 1,400 tons -- driving gold prices to 12-year lows. The panel said Switzerland no longer needs to back its currency with gold reserves, the world's fifth largest. Gold fell 5 percent to $308.60 an ounce in New York, the lowest since March 1985. The 1,400 tons is equal to about 40 percent of annual global demand. The recommendation comes as the world's central banks shed reserves of the precious metal in favor of better returns in bonds. Australia said in July it sold two-thirds of its gold, following earlier sales by the Netherlands and Belgium. ''This is another nail in the coffin in the idea that gold is a key monetary asset for central banks,'' said Kamal Naqvi, a precious metals analyst at Macquarie Equities Ltd. in London. While the Swiss government rejected the recommendation, that did little to calm investor concerns. The government said it will sell only about 400 of its 2,590 tons in gold, as it planned earlier, and that the sales probably will occur over the course of a decade after the year 2000. Published 15:07

To: Alex who wrote (2488)	10/27/1997 8:22:00 AM
From: Sergio R. Mejia	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116834

Alex: London gold bounces $3.00, remains vulnerable You are right about the Swiss: it was just a recommendation to sell at a convenient time. The market over reacted. Read below. Sergio Monday October 27 6:12 AM EST LONDON, Oct 27 (Reuters) - Gold bounced a little from a fresh 12-year low on Monday, gaining three dollars in early European trade while remaining badly bruised by Switzerland's proposed gold sales plan. Gold fixed at $311.80 an ounce on Monday morning, its lowest since its July 8, 1985 level of $309.25 but up on Monday's early spot price low of $307.75/$308.25. It was late trading in New York on Friday which really pummelled the gold price as U.S. traders reacted to details of Swiss gold sales plans which emerged early in the European day. The news caused gold to drop gradually from $322.00/$322.50 on Friday before New York opened, when it shed $4.00 to $316.00 bid. It held there until Europe's close, when U.S. fund-selling lopped off a further $7.00. Swiss officials recommended a phased sale of 1,400 tonnes of gold, more than half its reserves, to pay for a planned humanitarian fund and bolster current accounts. One London dealer said the market was very hard to read. ''I think that we could bounce a little but really, it's fingers in the air (uncertain) at the moment,'' he said. ''I think Friday got the bears going and I guess they may want to press that advantage home today,'' he added. Michael Wagner, a trader at brokers Brandeis in Frankfurt, saw gold prices targeting $300 after Friday's plunge, with the next important level the 1985 low around $280. ''I can't see why gold should make a rally on the upside over the next few weeks...Those buying now will have to be very brave,'' Wagner said, adding that gold could correct after hitting $300 and before sinking lower to $280. ''I don't think there's much support between the $309 we have now and the $280 we saw 12 years ago,'' he said. The market plunge hit gold stocks in Canada, South Africa and Australia, although Australian producers saw help coming from their currency's weakness versus the U.S. dollar. Physical trading in gold kicked in at $308.00 an ounce in Asia on Monday, fuelled mainly by Indian festival-related buying, which in turn sparked a short-covering rally by traders. Silver, having suffered along with gold on Friday, rallied from its early low of $4.75/$4.77 on Monday to trade at $4.82/$4.84 by 1100 GMT. Platinum held up amid continuing supply worries at $412.00/$414.00, down $1.00 from Friday's New York close, with palladium steady at $203.50/$205.50.