Two weeks ago we reported about one of the biggest daily withdrawals of eligible gold from the JPM gold vault, it not on an absolute basis, then certainly on a relative, when in one day over 260k ounces of gold were withdrawn, leaving a record low 141.6k ounces, or just over 4 tons... read more
Kenya, Australia, Poland and now South Korea. The country, whose net exports represent nearly 60% of GDP, and which have been deeply impacted by the recent collapse in the Yen, finally threw in the towel overnight and cut the benchmark seven-day repurchase rate from 2.75% to 2.50%, as only 6 of 20 economists predicted. The reason the move was surprising is that just like China, which overnight... read more
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) -- New Zealand's central bank has intervened in the currency market for the first time in five years to try to curb the local dollar's rise.
The rising Kiwi dollar, as the New Zealand currency is known, has been hurting the country's exporters. It is up about 12 percent against the U.S. dollar since the middle of last year.
Reserve Bank of New Zealand Governor... read more
A Federal Reserve (TREFTOTL) panel of bankers warned policy makers in February that record stimulus was pushing financial institutions to take on more credit risk and creating a “bubble” in the price of U.S. farmland.
“The margin pressures that the low-rate environment has put on financial institutions, coupled with dramatically increased compliance and other infrastructure costs, have... read more
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Gold futures settled higher on Monday, buoyed by continued strength in physical demand.
Copper prices finished almost flat after a nearly 7% rally on Friday.
Gold for June delivery GCM3 +1.75% rose $3.80, or 0.3%, to $1,468 an ounce on the Comex division of the... read more
In what must be an inexplicable move to momentum-chasers everywhere, as gold continued to decline in price in March, and long before its targeted smash in April, China was not backing off its gold purchases of the yellow product. Quite the contrary: as export data released by the Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department overnight showed, Chine... read more
When it comes to precious metals, April 2013 was characterized by extreme price swings, historic facts & figures, and remarkable news stories. This article is an attempt to focus on the real underlying story based on facts & figures. It should... read more
Investec’s Alastair Mundy has moved a significant portion of his £2.5bn Cautious Managed fund into gold bullion for the first time following savage price falls for the precious metal.
Mundy (pictured), who has been reducing his exposure to equities after a variety of indices hit record highs, said he has put 5% of his portfolio into physical gold in the last few weeks,... read more
The U.S. Mint's gold sales numbers show that April was the strongest month in the Mint's history. The U.S. Mint sold a staggering $311 million worth of gold in the month! Though an increase in sales was expected since the gold price dropped, these numbers blew away even the most optimistic estimates. Silver sales also were very strong and again breached the $100 million level and, as we mention... read more
The Reserve Bank of India issued a set of guidelines last week increasing restrictions on gold imports. According to UBS precious metals research they targeted the following areas:
1. To decrease gold imports, they aim... read more
