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Gold is a highly sought-after precious metal which, for many centuries, has been used as money, a store of value and in jewelry. The metal occurs as nuggets or grains in rocks, underground "veins" and in alluvial deposits. Modern industrial uses include dentistry and electronics, where gold has traditionally found use because of its good resistance to oxidative corrosion.
Gold Set To End Third Consecutive Weekly Rise Despite Dollar Rebound
The gold price has been fairly unchanged on Friday, as the yellow metal looks set to complete a third successive weekly gain, having seen the price hit yet another record high on Wednesday as futures touched $1,155.
Since reaching the highs mid-week, a slight dollar rebound has contained the rally as the gold price eased back from above the $1,150 level over recent sessions. This morning Globex futures were last changing hands at around $1,143.
Market commentary and analyst opinion appear somewhat mixed in reference to the immediate outlook considering gold's substantial rally over recent weeks. Some are predicting a short term dollar recovery which will pressure any further gains while elsewhere others have more bullish views for future gold prices, with some considering $1,200 gold in 2009 as a real possibility.
Also this morning, a report from the UK’s Royal Mint reflected the ‘in-vogue’ nature of the current gold market, as investors have looked for ways to buy physical gold. The Mint said demand for its physical gold products more than quadrupled in the third quarter of 2009 compared with the same period last year. The Royal Mint pressed over 32,000 ounces of gold into its gold sovereign coins, compared with 7,500 in the third quarter of 2008.
Other reports this week have pointed to further gold demand. Yesterday the World Gold Council (WGC) said that demand for gold is likely to remain well supported by continued economic and currency uncertainty, inflation concerns and the search for diversification.
According to the industry’s lobbying group, central banks were likely to "diversifying their dollar exposure in favour of the proven store of value represented by gold". In its quarterly report, The WGC said that total identifiable gold demand reached 800.3 tonnes in the third quarter of 2009. With a value of approximately $24.7 billion, global gold demand was up 15% from the previous quarter.
On the London Stock Exchange gold equity trading was fairly mixed this morning. FTSE100 constituent Randgold Resources (LSE: RRS) edged half a percent higher while London’s next largest gold stock Petropavlovsk (LSE: POG) slid 1.5%. Elsewhere on the main market, Centamin Egypt (LSE: CEY) rose more than 1% and Canada’s Yamana Gold (LSE: YAU) was unchanged.
Among AIM’s gold stocks, several juniors made reasonable gains in a fairly indifferent session in the broader market. Tajikistan operating Kryso Resources (AIM: KYS) was one of the top risers as it climbed 6.5%, and fellow Central Asia based explorer Chaarat Gold (AIM: CGH) followed, rising almost 4% this morning.
Norseman Gold (AIM: NGL) added 2.5% to Thursday’s close, while African focused Cluff Gold (AIM: CLF) and Frontier Mining (AIM: FML) were also positive, rising around 1% each.
