Tag Archives: price of gold

Sep 09

Price of Gold Weekly Recap – September 2-6, 2013

Posted on by

Monday Open: $1,389.90
Weekly High: $1,415.20
Weekly Low: $1,366.90
Friday Close: $1,389.20

Tensions in Syria continued to influence gold this week, and other global economic news also registered on gold’s radar.

Monday was a quiet day as U.S. traders stepped away from their computers for the Labor Day holiday. Overall, the yellow metal was little changed on the first day of the week.

Tuesday began the upward swing of the week, with traders returning to their desks to sweep up some of the lower gold prices for short-term trading. The continued question of a military strike on Syria was slightly revved up on Tuesday, as it seemed Congress might support President Obama’s plan to attack Syria for using chemical weapons. Traders returned to the gold market Tuesday on some increased safe haven buying.

Tensions eased slightly on Wednesday, causing some pullback from the stress trading. Prices also dipped on profit taking from the previous day’s wins. The U.S. Federal Reserve released an economic report Wednesday afternoon that showed the U.S. economy officially growing mildly to moderately, depending on sector. This news was not surprising, so it did little to affect market conditions.

Thursday morning was quiet on the gold trading front as traders anticipated a slew of U.S. economic data to be released in the afternoon. Sure enough, this data was positive and so caused a slump in the gold market. The reports included the weekly jobless claims report, the ADP national employment report, chain store sales trends, and more.

Even so, it was the U.S. jobs report Friday morning that people were anticipating, since many believe a positive report can influence the Fed to start their tapering program earlier rather than later. It was good news for gold bugs, however, with the unemployment rate falling one point to 7.3%, which was still behind expectations. The decrease was also not because people were getting new jobs but because people were leaving the work force, according to analysts. The non-farm payroll report was also lower than expected. Therefore, Friday afternoon saw prices rise to end the week near to where it began.

The Syrian conflict and the Federal Reserve’s decision about when to start the tapering program will likely influence gold prices next week.

Sep 02

Price of Gold Weekly Recap – August 26-30, 2013

Posted on by

Monday Open: $1,393.90
Weekly High: $1,424.50
Weekly Low: $1,393.20
Friday Close: $1,394.50

This week’s gold price chart looks like a bell curve because mid-week spiked high in response to the Syrian crisis, then fell to close the week nearly as it started. Monday afternoon started the upward trend as gold broke the $1,400 price mark on safe haven trading related to the crisis in Syria. Secretary of State John Kerry released a statement that the U.S. believes Syria used chemical weapons against its citizens, a global war crime that President Obama said may be punished with a missile attack. George Gero, analyst at RBC, called the steady rising of gold prices in relation to the crisis, a “small fear premium.”

Tuesday continued the Syrian response trend to land gold a fresh three-month high, as the U.S. seemed poised to take military action in an already unstable Middle East.

Wednesday saw gold hit the week’s high, and also an all-time high against the Indian rupee. A faltering rupee could be bullish for gold, because even though gold is now more expensive to buy for those using the rupee, it reinforces the psychology behind why gold is important to have for the gold-savvy Indian consumers. Wednesday was a 3.5 month high for gold.

Thursday saw gold slipping back down from its mid-week high on profit-taking and a less nervous approach to Syria, after President Obama released a statement overnight that the U.S. does not plan on attacking Syria. U.S. allies are also not in agreement about what to do with Syria.

Friday’s extension of Thursday’s news continued to quell the anxiety over Syria, and so the marketplace responded by trading out of safe haven assets like gold, bringing the yellow metal back down to the week’s opening price range. The U.S. Labor Day weekend should mean that trading is slow throughout the beginning of the next week.

Aug 26

Price of Gold Weekly Recap – August 19-23, 2013

Posted on by

Monday Open: $1,365.60
Weekly High: $1,399.70
Weekly Low: $1,356.90
Friday Close: $1,396.50

This week proved fruitful for gold, as a few economic global events pushed the price range up slightly higher by Friday, despite selling off early in the week. Last week showed improvements for gold, jumping 13%, so after those dramatic gains in an otherwise uncertain trading realm, traders were eager to reap the rewards from the incline and sell off their shares on Monday, bringing the price of gold back down to $1,365.

Tuesday saw gold rise a little bit on some more safe haven demand and a lower dollar. Traders are keeping an eye on the situation in Egypt, as this global crisis could push people back into desiring the hedge fund of gold. Other items of interest this week were the FOMC minutes released on Wednesday and Chinese manufacturing data released on Thursday.

Wednesday’s prices remained near steady as the FOMC released minutes that proved no real surprise to gold traders. With the expectation that the Federal Reserve would be soon employing their “tapering” program to end low interest rates, gold traders are cautious, but the meeting on Wednesday revealed no concrete time frame for when this would happen.

Because of the lack of news from the FOMC, Thursday’s prices remained steady with slight gains. The increase was also influenced by the manufacturing reports released on China’s economy, which had shown improvement. China is the world’s second largest buyer of gold, so a flourishing economy is bullish for the yellow metal.

Friday ended the week on a fairly sharp incline, probably influenced by the subtly bullish factors piling up throughout the week. These gains could spill over into next week.

Aug 12

Price of Gold Weekly Recap – August 5-8, 2013

Posted on by

Monday Open: $1,302.30
Weekly High: $1,314.70
Weekly Low: $1,275.10
Friday Close: $1,313.20

Summer trading was fairly quiet for gold this week. Monday closed the first day of the week on a slight downturn, due to lack of fresh bullish news for precious metals. In related news, China’s economy reported growth on Monday, which could be bullish for gold in the long term, since China is the world’s second biggest buyer of the yellow metal.

Tuesday featured “Fedspeak” by Atlanta Fed president Dennis Lockheart, which also brought the market down. Lockheart made the statement that he expects the tapering program to begin by the end of the year. Tuesday’s gold market responded negatively to this statement, dropping gold to below the $1,300 mark to hit a new three-week low.

Wednesday recovered some of those losses in short covering after midday selling pressure had worn off. Overall, trading is still relatively quiet and uneventful during these “dog days” of summer, when traders in North America and Europe are vacationing and away from their computers.

Thursday was the best of the week for gold, shooting up above the $1,300 bar to overcome previous losses. The dollar contributed to this gain by hitting a six-week low overnight, and the European Union also released news that the economy was improving, a bullish factor for many markets.

Friday ended the week by consolidating the gains from Thursday to end on an overall higher note.

Jul 29

Price of Gold Weekly Recap – July 22-26, 2013

Posted on by

Monday Open: $1,332.00
Weekly High: $1,347.00
Weekly Low: $1,311.20
Friday Close: $1,333.10

The price of gold fluctuated within a fairly small range this week, notably pushing above the $1,300 mark. Other than the news of breaking the $1,300 barrier, no major events contributed to the trajectory of the yellow metal this week. Perhaps because traders are starting to enter the summer doldrums, a time when the market slows as people enjoy their vacations, gold moved pretty slowly this week.

Monday exited the weekend with a solid jump beyond $1,300 to a four-week high, inflated by a weak dollar. Tuesday was quiet, with a few downward slumps on technical correction from Monday’s gain.

Wednesday also pulled some downside correction as the dollar regained its strength. Thursday righted those losses with a now sliding dollar, which hit a four-week low. Some jobless claims also came in at lower than expected. The end of the week was fairly quiet, boasting no major news in the global marketplace.

The next major talking point for gold is the Federal Open Market Committee meeting next week, and more U.S. unemployment reports.

Jul 22

Price of Gold Weekly Recap – July 15-19, 2013

Posted on by

Monday Open: $1,283.10
Weekly High: $1,294.50
Weekly Low: $1,273.30
Friday Close: $1,294.90

The most dramatic shift in the price of gold happened this week on Wednesday, but no radical gains or losses were reported for the week overall.

Monday opened the week with short covering and bargain hunting to end the trading day slightly higher. Not too much global news impacted the prices early in the week, prices instead stagnating on anticipation of the Federal Reserve’s semi-annual address to the House of Representatives on Wednesday and Thursday.

Tuesday saw prices rise on increased stability of U.S. inflation pressures. Traders in the gold market banked on the expectation that the Fed wouldn’t start their bond tapering program as soon as previously expected. This theory is based on Chairman Ben Bernanke’s recent addresses, in which he has not indicated a certain time frame for ending the quantitative easing program.

Part of this is because the U.S. economy, though experiencing improvement, has not accelerated at a rate to deem higher interest rates appropriate quite yet. An unstable job market and low inflation are still the names of the game right now. Last week the gold market responded to the Fed’s slow movement with a 5% increase in prices.

True to expectations, Bernanke did not give any solid indication of when the tapering program might begin. Analysts are calling his address a wash, since no major changes are being made. The sharp drop on Wednesday can more be attributed to a high dollar and technical correction than to reactions to the Fed.

Thursday when Bernanke continued his address, the gold marketplace continued to report little to no reaction. Thursday ended a little higher from traders taking advantage of the brief price fall.

Friday was quiet overall, ending the week a few points higher than it began, pushed upward more by bullish outside markets than any major world news.

Jul 15

Price of Gold Weekly Recap – July 8-12, 2013

Posted on by

Monday Open: $1,235.40
Weekly High: $1,298.00
Weekly Low: $1,233.70
Friday Close: $1,284.40

In light of all the major losses gold has been suffering lately, gold bugs will be happy to know that this week charted gains in the yellow metal’s corner. With a major spike caused by “Fed speak” on Thursday, gold is now reaching up toward the $1,300 mark.

Monday opened positively for gold, prices reacting to a slight slump in the dollar index after the greenback had hit a three-year high last Friday. Conflict in Egypt is still on the world’s radar, and while nothing extreme happened overnight, gold takes its place once again as a safety fund in times of crisis.

Tuesday’s price gains were caused by economic reports out of China that relayed higher inflationary rates in the country. China’s consumer price index for June was up to 2.7%, higher than the 2.1% of May and the forecast of 2.5%. Inflation, or the threat of inflation, brings more attention back to gold as a hedge fund.

The really big day of the week for gold was Thursday – the FOMC had a meeting on Wednesday, which consisted of more deliberation than action, and no conclusive evidence for any changes in Fed policy in the near future, which caused a major price jump on Thursday. One of the major issues of the meeting was how to convey the Fed’s policies to the public. What is now being called “Fed speak” to refer to the statements issued by Chairman Ben Bernanke is a good sign for gold right now. The result of the meeting is that now the Fed expects to employ its “tapering” program later instead of sooner.

Friday reported a few losses in mixed trading, but nothing too substantial to undo the gains from the day before.

Jul 08

Price of Gold Weekly Recap – July 1-5 2013

Posted on by

Monday Open: $1,252.60
Weekly High: $1,263.00
Weekly Low: $1,209.80
Friday Close: $1,222.20

Gold continued its downward streak this week, but not without a little momentum upwards first. Monday opened the week on a sharp rally as traders jumped in to take advantage of some short covering from last week’s dramatic losses. The first day of the week hit the week’s high, and if the price would have continued upwards after that, it might have been a sign that gold would have hit its bottom, but Tuesday marked another decline.

The bargain hunting from Monday gave way to a strong selling pressure on Tuesday as the U.S. dollar pushed up to a four-week high. The U.S. dollar and the Federal Reserve’s plan to soon pull back on their quantitative easing program seem to be the major indicators of a continued loss for gold. As the U.S. economy improves, the yellow metal suffers losses as a hedge fund as traders venture into different territory.

Traders are also watching the political situation in Egypt, and the price of gold meandered a little higher by the end of Tuesday. If the crisis in Cairo reaches critical mass, gold could become desirable once again as a safe haven. China is also in gold news, as physical demand for gold seems to be petering off.

Markets went virtually unchanged Thursday, as U.S. trading took a pause on July 4th for the Independence Day holiday. Wednesday showed an equal amount of inaction as many traders started celebrating early.

Friday saw gold take a drop as significantly positive U.S. unemployment data rolled in. The unemployment report was very strong, marking an increase of 195,000 new jobs during the month of June, when only 155,000 to 166,000 were expected. The negative spin on a recovering economy is a lackluster performance from gold. However, analysts predict that even this news isn’t enough to push the Fed to start their tapering program right away, and put expectations for a start date around October.

Next week, focus will be on next moves from the Federal Reserve.

Jul 01

Weekly Gold Price Recap – June 24-28, 2013

Posted on by

Monday Open: $1,282.60
Weekly High: $1,287.40
Weekly Low: $1,186.30
Friday Close: $1,233.00

The gold market experienced major losses this last week of June as the yellow metal once again hit a 3-year low. A far cry from the predictions of $2,000 per ounce made last year, gold is weighing in around $1,200 this week.

Monday saw gold fall about $20 to $1,277 as Goldman Sachs downgraded predictions for future prices, setting a new bar of $1,030 for the end of the year. The more stable economic situation in the U.S. and global markets are accounting for the major price drop in gold. Last Wednesday, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke made the most explicit statement yet about pulling back on the quantitative easing program that has been in effect since 2008.

This zero-interest rate model has spurred gold to record levels in the past 5 years, as gold is non-taxed and often sought as a safe haven investment during times of economic turmoil, but now with an improving economy and lower unemployment rate, the end of these liberal economic measures is near. With the change in the economic landscape, traders are gravitating more towards higher returns elsewhere. Even the high demand for physical gold in India is not enough to put gold back at its previous high.

Gold has dropped 23% this quarter, losing about one quarter of its value since April. The yellow metal hit a fresh three-year low on Wednesday. Part of the dramatic pullback in the market is due to economic crises in China, commonly referred to as a “cash crunch,” which has drawn investors away from raw commodities.

The precious metal broke below the $1,200 barrier on Thursday for the first time since 2010. Analysts say that a continuing drop in gold should be expected. A professor of business at Duke University, Campbell Harvey, estimates the “fair value” of gold, or the average, to be about $800, which predicts even a ways to go before gold hits a plateau.

Friday marked the end of the second trading quarter of the year, with gold having dropped 30% since the beginning of 2013. The yellow metal is heavy in the news lately for the harsh beating it has taken since the “golden years” of 2011 and 2012, starting when gold hit a record high of $1,921 in September 2011, then continuing to remain in the upper reaches. Contrary to some hopeful analysts’ predictions, though, It never quite broke $2,000, and it is floundering at nearly half that now.

Jun 03

Price of Gold Weekly Recap – May 27-31, 2013

Posted on by

Monday Open: $1,394.50
Weekly High: $1,420.70
Weekly Low: $1,379.30
Friday Close: $1,385.50

The price of gold posted its 7th monthly decline in 8 months this week. Gold has always been volatile, but it seems as if this losing streak isn’t going to skyrocket upwards anytime soon.

Monday was a fairly complacent day, but Tuesday experienced some losses against the strong U.S. dollar. However, the losses were minimal for gold as compared with the relatively high place of the greenback, which is a good sign for gold.

Wednesday saw the yellow metal make some gains as the dollar dropped. U.S. Treasury bonds are rising in price this week, hitting the highest in a year, which is a sign of a recovering economy and increased likelihood that the Federal Reserve will soon start to change its loose monetary policy, a prospect that has been on the gold horizon for many months now.

Thursday saw gold continue its upward climb as Asian stock markets declined and sent some people back to the safe haven of gold. Thursday marked a fresh 2-week high for gold, but declined again on Friday on a technical correction. European stock markets reported high unemployment, the U.S. dollar index was firm, and the market place awaited economic data from China on Saturday. Also, the wedding season in India is now over, reducing demand for physical gold.