Gold bounced back on Monday with the market inching towards last session’s nine-week high as pressure on Asian stock markets triggered safe-haven bids for the metal.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold rose 0.3 percent to $1,106.9 an ounce by 0045 GMT. U.S. gold gained 0.8 percent to $1,107.
* Gold climbed to its highest since early November on Friday, adding more than 4 percent to its value this year, as concerns over the Chinese economy and tumbling stock markets boosted the safe-haven appeal of the precious metal.
* Perceived missteps by China’s authorities in controlling their share market and currency have led to concerns Beijing might lose its grip on economic policy too.
* China will face great difficulty in achieving economic growth above 6.5 percent over the 2016-2020 period due to slowing global demand and rising labour costs at home, the China Securities Journal quoted a top state adviser as saying.
* Investment appetite for bullion showed signs of picking up last week. Holdings of the world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, New York-listed SPDR Gold Shares, rose 4.2 tonnes on Thursday, data from the fund showed.
* Bullion is often seen as an alternative investment during times of financial uncertainty, although safe-haven rallies tend to be short-lived.
* Gold slid 10 percent last year on fears higher U.S. rates would lower demand for the non-interest-paying asset, while boosting the dollar. A stronger greenback makes dollar-denominated gold costlier for holders of other currencies.
* Silver was up 0.6 percent at $14.016 an ounce, while platinum lost 0.8 percent at $869.74 an ounce. Palladium was down 1.9 percent to $484.5 an ounce.
Source: www.bullionbulletin.in