GOLD FLAT IN HOLIDAY SHORTENED WEEK
This week has brought very little movement in the Precious Metal markets due to holiday market closures. On the days the markets were trading there was little to no movement to speak of. On Wednesday there was a small rise in value thanks to the news out of Japan. “News about Japan planning to announce some stimulus measures are perking up the market,” Sterling Smith, a futures specialist at Citigroup Inc. in Chicago, said in a telephone interview. “We may see some sharp moves in this very thinly traded market.” For the day, the Gold price is trending down along with equities. As Gold closes out 2012, it is seeing its twelfth year of gains due to continually low interest rates, eurozone stability concerns and high demand from central banks. Global Gold demand in 2013 is predicted to be led by a recovery in India and strength in China. This would be Gold’s thirteenth consecutive bull year.
TO THE EDGE OF THE CLIFF
As the calendar year comes to an end next week, so does the deadline for the United States to deal with the fiscal cliff. On Monday the spotlight remains fixed on Washington as investors continue to await a fiscal cliff resolution. “It's unlikely that we will see any resolution on the fiscal cliff before the end of the year as the Republicans and the Democrats have differences to iron out. I don't think it can be solved within these few days,” Brian Lan, managing director of Singapore based GoldSilver Central Pte Ltd, said. President Obama cut his Hawaii vacation short to return to Washington to deal with the unfinished fiscal cliff negotiations. There is a Jan. 1 deadline, after which, if not met, most Americans will feel a sharp rise in taxes. Both parties are eager to pass a measure to keep taxes low, but the sticking point is on difficult spending cuts. Any bill that is passed may not contain the cuts that either party wishes, but the automatic cuts set to take effect Jan. 1 seem to be unacceptable to the president. While both parties seem eager to pass a resolution, most experts believe it is highly unlikely. Chip Cobb, portfolio manager at BMT Asset Management, said “There might be some last-minute Hail Mary resolution, or a chance there is some tax agreement, but I don’t think there will be any spending agreement” before the end of the year. At this point the markets are prepared for the political antics to continue for the first few weeks of 2013.
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