Capital Gold Group Report: Gold Rises On Weak Dollar, Uncertain Outlook
by Matt Day of Dow Jones Newswires, July 15, 2010
NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--Gold futures ended with small gains, but were largely unchanged as a set of mixed U.S. and Chinese indicators clouded an already hazy economic picture.
The most actively traded contract, for August delivery, settled up $1.30, at $1,208.30 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Futures closed within $15 of the $1,200 an ounce mark for the tenth consecutive day Thursday, as the uncertain economic outlook has provided little direction for precious metals prices.
"We're in a sort of holding pattern," said Caesar Bryan, portfolio manager of GAMCO's Gold Fund. "The commentators seem to be somewhat cautious about gold, but the price doesn't seem to want to go down."
Futures were supported Thursday by a falling dollar, as the greenback fell to two-month lows against the euro following successful European debt auctions. Gold prices have historically moved inversely to the dollar. Some invest in the metal as an alternative currency or as a hedge against inflation.
Gold prices rose to record highs in May and June as the euro-zone sovereign debt crisis and sluggish U.S. economic recovery sent investors rushing to buy the precious metal, which is thought by some to hold its value better than other assets during economic turmoil. But gold has struggled to find direction as Europe's fiscal situation has shown signs of stabilizing and the U.S. has entered corporate earnings season.
There is "a lack of clarity about what direction the economy is going," said Bart Melek, global commodity strategist with BMO Capital Markets. He said markets didn't find any clarity Thursday, as investors weighed largely disappointing economic data from the U.S. and China against some strong earnings reports.
The most-active silver contract settled higher for a third consecutive day. Comex September silver settled up 7.2 cents, or 0.4%, at $18.362 an ounce.
Nymex October platinum settled up $13.10, or 0.9%, at $1,533.70 an ounce. September palladium rose $1.40, or 0.3%, to $467.20 an ounce.
Capital Gold Group, gold group, gold, gold prices, gold news, gold coins, gold bullion, gold IRA, IRA gold
