GOLD FINDS SUPPORT; U.S. STOCK MARKET IMPACTED BY EUROPE
Gold received support today from the Chinese New Year that begins Saturday, Feb. 9, which is providing demand for the yellow metal. “Physical demand is reasonably good because the Chinese New Year is round the corner and will continue to hold the market this week, but next week Asian markets will be on holidays and that source of support will disappear,” Bernard Sin, senior vice president at MKS SA, said. “Markets may react dramatically.”
The U.S. stock market is reacting negatively to uncertainty in Europe as worried investors have pushed Spanish bond yields higher. “We had a heck of a run, but you can see the spillover from Europe today, and we’re back to the same old story, with Italian and Spanish yields in particular spooking European markets,” Bill Stone, chief investment strategist at PNC Asset Management Group, said.
According to a Federal Reserve survey, U.S. banks anticipate that credit quality will increase in 2013. The Fed believes the slow growth in the economy for the fourth quarter of 2012 was only temporarily and will improve over time as stated January 30 at the Federal Open Market Committee. “Credit conditions are still tight but they're certainly much easier than they were just a couple of years ago,” Dana Saporta, a U.S. economist at Credit Suisse Group AG in New York, said.“It’s not as much of a drag as it was.”
At 5 p.m. (EST), the APMEX Precious Metals spot prices were:
- Gold, $1,675.60, Up $4.50
- Silver, $31.80, Down $0.20
- Platinum, $1,699.40, Up $11.70
- Palladium, $759.00, Up $1.60
APMEX’s Account Managers now have extended hours Mondays through Thursdays and are here to serve you until 8 p.m. (EST)! Or call us Fridays until 6 p.m. (EST)! 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.