Gold

YOU ARE HERE:

Home > Gold

Recent Commentary:

Stock Market News for May 15, 2012 - Market News

Tue, 15 May 2012
Zacks Investment Research

Markets suffered a heavy fall yesterday as political uncertainty in Europe continued and China’s economic health looked gloomier than previously perceived. Financial bellwether JPMorgan’s disclosure that it had suffered a $2 billion trading loss remained an overhang on the markets and dragged down financials once again. As the benchmarks finished in the red, S&P 500 recorded its lowest level since February.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) inched down 1% to close at 12,695.35. The Standard & Poor 500 (S&P 500) lost 1.1% and finished yesterday’s trading session at 1,338.35. The tech-laden Nasdaq Composite Index slumped 1.1% and ended at 2,902.58. The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) jumped almost 10% to settle significantly higher at 21.87. Consolidated volumes on the New York Stock Exchange, Nasdaq, and the American Stock Exchange were roughly 6.6 billion shares, lower than the daily average of 6.78 billion shares. Declining stocks hammered the advancing ones on the NYSE; as for every five stocks that ended lower, only one stock could move higher.

Benchmarks had raised high hopes earlier this year, when they started with a bang. Aside from a few low days, benchmarks sprung to individual key levels and sustained those levels for a while. However, over the past couple of weeks benchmarks have been vulnerable to European concerns arising out of political uncertainty and rising borrowing costs. They have also been dented by a mixed bag of domestic economic data as well as by dismal data from Europe and China. It hasn’t been smooth sailing, which is highlighted by the fact that the Dow has closed in the red on eight occasions out of the last nine trading days and the S&P 500 recorded its fourth decline out of five sessions. Moreover, the benchmarks are almost near their three-month lows and last week the Dow posted its worst weekly performance for the year.

Things were no different yesterday as European concerns continued to hamper domestic sentiment. Greece is still struggling to form a government. On Monday, President Karolos Papoulias called four party leaders for talks, but optimism arising out of this development soon vanished after the SYRIZA party denied attending the meeting, which was followed by another leftist leader walking out. With the nation still grappling to form a government and signs strongly suggesting that things are getting tougher, Greece may soon default on its debt and eventually exit the euro. The nation needs a government to secure the bailout and avoid this scenario. Following yesterday’s developments, Greece, Italy and Spain witnessed another rise in their borrowing costs.

Additionally, German chancellor Angela Merkel seemed to be in a tough spot, after centre left Social Democrats defeated her Christian Democrat party in a poll by a huge margin. This yet again reflects the public’s attitude to austerity measures. Merkel termed it as a "bitter, painful defeat”, but she said that she will still stick to the austerity plans.

Meanwhile, China’s has decided to reduce the amount of cash that the country’s banks must retain. The decision was described ad ‘pro-growth’ and was aimed at easing the monetary situation. However, with most of the data coming in over the last few days being of a disappointing nature, investors’ faith in the second-largest economy has reduced and the possibility of a softening economy weighed on the markets.

Shifting to the domestic front, an earlier disclosure by JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) about suffering a loss of $2 billion continued to hamper he sentiments. In latest developments, Ina Drew resigned as the chief investment officer, thus becoming the first among the top executives to vacate office after the incident.

Shares of JPMorgan slumped 3.2% and the stock emerged as the biggest loser among the 30 Dow components. Other financial stocks in the Dow, American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) and Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) suffered losses of 2.1% and 2.7%, respectively. Financials had a bad day and the Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF) slipped as much as 2.1%. Shares including Citigroup, Inc. (NYSE:C), Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS), The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) and Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) lost 4.1%, 4.4%, 2.3% and 2.7%, respectively.

AMER EXPRESS CO (AXP): Free Stock Analysis Report

BANK OF AMER CP (BAC): Free Stock Analysis Report

CITIGROUP INC (C): Free Stock Analysis Report

GOLDMAN SACHS (GS): Free Stock Analysis Report

JPMORGAN CHASE (JPM): Free Stock Analysis Report

MORGAN STANLEY (MS): Free Stock Analysis Report

WELLS FARGO-NEW (WFC): Free Stock Analysis Report

To read this article on Zacks.com click here.

Zacks Investment Research

Paulson Holds to Gold ETFs in First Quarter, Profits as Prices Rise

CNBC.com
Wed, 16 May 2012 00:37 GMT
Prominent hedge fund manager John Paulson held on to his ETF bullion holdings in the first quarter of this year, profiting from an early surge in gold prices before the market tanked, a regulatory filing by his company showed on Tuesday.

Closing Gold & Silver Market Report – 5/15/2012

Tue, 15 May 2012 16:04:00

EURO TUMBLES AS GREEKS WILL HEAD BACK TO POLLS

After weeks of infighting and deadlock among Greek politicians, party leaders declared their inability to form a unified government. The nation will return to the voting booth to reshuffle the deck again in an election that will essentially amount to a referendum on whether Greece should drop the euro as its currency or continue a path of fiscal austerity. The election is expected to be scheduled for June 10 or June 17. The euro tumbled to a four-month low against the American dollar on the announcement, which drove Precious Metals prices down. “If Greece -- and this is the will of the great majority -- wants to stay in the euro, then they have to accept the conditions,” said German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble. “Otherwise, it isn’t possible. No responsible candidate can hide that from the electorate.”

Wall Street posted losses today on European fears, despite cautiously optimistic news about the American economy. “The economy continues to grow at a decent clip, but there are still a lot of risks coming from overseas,” said Omair Sharif, an economist at RBS. Signs of growth could be seen today in retail data, showing that retail sales are growing (albeit at a reduced rate than the past few months) with an overall gain of 0.1 percent. Lower gasoline prices may boost consumer spending by freeing up household incomes for discretionary spending. The core Consumer Price Index, the inflation index most used by the Federal Reserve, rose 0.2 percent, which reflects an annualized rise in prices of 6 percent.

At 5 p.m. (EDT), the APMEX Precious Metals spot prices were:

Gold - $1,545.30 - Down $17.20.
Silver - $27.77 - Down $0.65.
Platinum - $1,433.30 - Down $10.30.
Palladium - $596.00 - Up $0.20.

APMEX’s Account Managers now have extended hours Mondays through Thursdays and are here to serve you until 8 p.m. (EDT)! Or call us Fridays until 6 p.m. (EDT)! If you have any questions about investing in Precious Metals or simply would prefer to place your order by telephone, we are here to help.

Mid-Day Gold & Silver Market Report – 5/15/2012

Tue, 15 May 2012 12:02:00

GOLD’S PRICE FAVORS CONSUMERS; AMERICAN DOLLAR STRONGER

As we have seen over the past two weeks, the Precious Metals market has seen a price decrease. There have been many global factors affecting the market. The lower market has not gone unnoticed by investors. Demand from major Asian consumers is strong. “Refiners can’t deliver immediate Gold because there’s a sudden surge in demand. We’re seeing demand from India, Thailand and Indonesia,” a physical dealer in Singapore said.

China’s inflow of investment has dropped in the first four months of the year. These numbers could show a negative outlook for one of the world’s largest economies. “We believe the negative trend reflects concerns over China’s lower growth potential, lack of confidence in the global growth outlook, and poorer access to funding from deleveraging banks,” said Dariusz Kowalczyk, senior economist at Credit Agricole-CIB. The trade market has been affected by global economic woes, especially in Europe.

Another month has come and gone, and the American economy is keeping up a steady climb. With retail sales up, lower gasoline prices and the fall of the euro, the U.S.A. dollar is strong. The economy keeps rolling along,” said Chris Rupkey, chief financial economist at Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ in New York.

At 1 p.m. (EDT), the APMEX Precious Metals spot prices were:

Gold - $1560.00 - Down $2.40.
Silver - $28.14 - Down $0.28.
Platinum - $1448.10 - Up $4.50.
Palladium - $602.30 - Up $6.40.

APMEX’s Account Managers now have extended hours Mondays through Thursdays and are here to serve you until 8 p.m. (EDT)! Or call us Fridays until 6 p.m. (EDT)! If you have any questions about investing in precious metals or simply would prefer to place your order by telephone, we are here to help.

Morning Gold & Silver Market Report – 5/15/2012

Tue, 15 May 2012 08:03:00

EUROZONE FEARS PERMEATE PRECIOUS METALS MARKET

Precious Metals prices remained relatively steady in overnight trading. Physical demand and better-than-expected German economic data helped maintain prices overnight, but concerns continue over Greece’s role and whether it will stay in the eurozone, adding to the volatile currency market. In a note to its customers, broker Marex Spectron said, “When German GDP came in at 0.5 percent, a lot higher than expected, the subsequent rally in the euro gave rise to a quick 10-dollar short covering rally in Gold.” However, Gold’s rebound is seen as a likely scenario. Analyst Pradeep Unni said, “(Gold’s) safe-haven status has been tarnished. … It will wobble on the euro’s weakness, but in a very short term, bargain hunting and pent-up demand will emerge, taking it higher.”

The push for austerity in Greece remains in place regardless of pleas from Alexis Tsipras, who boycotted a bargaining meeting yesterday in support of his views. The talk of Greece leaving the euro is not viewed as a realistic option. However, the failure of the Greek government to form a unity government after its most recent elections continues to adversely affect European markets. London-based economist Marchel Alexandrovich said, “The euro breakup story is gathering steam again. … If Greece were to ever exit the euro, no amount of reassuring comments will convince investors that other countries won’t soon follow.”

Francois Hollande is to be sworn in as France’s president later today. Once sworn in, he is expected to fly to Germany to meet with Chancellor Angela Merkel for the first time. The meeting will be closely monitored due to their disparate views and Merkel’s very public support of Hollande’s challenger Nicolas Sarkozy. Economist Carsten Brzeski said, “In our view, what currently looks like a clash between growth-fanatics and austerity-fetishists will eventually end in a good European compromise with something for everyone: The fiscal compact and the medium-term goal of balanced budgets should remain intact, but complemented by a new growth compact with European funds and initiatives.” Political analyst Erwin Grandinger said, “I think it’s the first kick-off meeting to repair personal relations between Hollande and Merkel. Merkel had done something extremely unusual. She took sides in the presidential elections.” Hollande has supported pro-growth sentiments, while Merkel has had a pro-austerity position.

At 9 a.m. (EDT), the APMEX Precious Metals spot prices were:

Gold - $1,559.90 – Down $2.50.
Silver - $28.28 – Down $0.14.
Platinum - $1,450.40 – Up $6.80.
Palladium - $603.50 – Up $7.60.

Facebook’s Challenge: Getting Users to Click on Ads

CNBC.com
Tue, 15 May 2012 04:05 GMT
For Facebook, advertising is a gold mine: It represents a wide majority of the company’s revenues. It can market targeted information for its nearly one billion users/consumers, who each stay engaged on the platform for hours each month.

Articles:

Mining for Top Gold and Silver Stocks - Investment Ideas

On April 1st, I wrote an article for TheStreet.com titled "Fool’s Gold," where I reiterated a favorite argument and trade idea from the past year about taking short positions, or selling calls, on the Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF (GDX) as its momentum slowed vs. gold itself.

Happy Phi Day -- Perfect Day for Some Phinancial Fun

June 18 (6-18 is that special day when we celebrate the Golden Ratio (0.618...) and all the ways we use it today in wave analysis.

$6 Billion in Gold: Take That to the Bank

The key point is worth emphasizing: "central banks are now expanding their gold reserves" after gold has had an incredible run! Learn more...

Precious Metals Pop Quiz: Why Are Gold Prices Falling?

Gold's drop caught many investors off-guard, as it plunged an incredible $40/ounce within two trading sessions. But our Metals Specialty Services editor Mike Drakulich discussed just such a potential move during an interview last week.

Junior Mining Stocks are Cheap - Investment Ideas

In case anyone hasn't noticed, gold and silver are once again on a tear. The long-term bullish trend in gold that is now going on its tenth year has been driven by the ongoing devaluation of the Dollar due to growing fiscal imbalances and the Fed's easy money policies of the last few years.

Mon, 20 Jun 2011 15:23:00 GMT
www.dgse.com
Buy, sell or trade fine jewelry, pre-owned Rolex watches, diamonds, wedding jewelry, gold and silver bullion, rare coins, estate pieces and more!

Visit these pages for more Gold resources:

401k gold investing
Base Metals
Glenn beck gold investing
Gold investing
Gold Investment
Gold precious metals mutual funds
Gold trade
Online gold investing
Silver gold investing
Silver vs gold investing
The abcs of gold investing

Gold

Recent Commentary:

Stock Market News for May 15, 2012 - Market News

Paulson Holds to Gold ETFs in First Quarter, Profits as Prices Rise

Closing Gold & Silver Market Report – 5/15/2012

Mid-Day Gold & Silver Market Report – 5/15/2012

Morning Gold & Silver Market Report – 5/15/2012

Facebook’s Challenge: Getting Users to Click on Ads

Articles:

Mining for Top Gold and Silver Stocks - Investment Ideas

Happy Phi Day -- Perfect Day for Some Phinancial Fun

$6 Billion in Gold: Take That to the Bank

Precious Metals Pop Quiz: Why Are Gold Prices Falling?

Junior Mining Stocks are Cheap - Investment Ideas

Resources:

Dgse CO INC in Dallas, TX | 11311 Reeder Rd, Dallas, TX

WebElements Periodic Table of the Elements | Gold | Essential ...

Dallas Gold and Silver Exchange, Dallas, TX : Reviews and maps ...

RIAA certification - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jewelry, Rolex, Diamonds | Dallas Gold & Silver Exchange | DGSE

Gold Price

gold: Definition from Answers.com - Answers.com: Wiki Q&A combined ...

Kitco - Gold Precious Metals - Buy Gold Sell Gold, Silver ...

24-hour Spot Chart - Gold

Gold - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Dgse CO INC in Dallas, TX | 11311 Reeder Rd, Dallas, TX

WebElements Periodic Table of the Elements | Gold | Essential ...

Dallas Gold and Silver Exchange, Dallas, TX : Reviews and maps ...

RIAA certification - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jewelry, Rolex, Diamonds | Dallas Gold & Silver Exchange | DGSE