Morning Gold & Silver Market Report – 1/27/2012

FASTEST INCREASE IN GDP IN 18 MONTHS STILL WORSE THAN EXPECTED   

Most U.S. stock futures turned lower after the fourth-quarter Gross Domestic Product report was released. The U.S. economy grew 2.8% in the fourth quarter of 2011. This was the fastest growth in 18 months, but economists were expecting an increase of 3%. The trade deficit narrowed slightly, with exports growing more than imports. Inflation, which is measured by an index, rose 1.1%, excluding food and energy.  Gold and Silver prices remained slightly lower after the announcement.

The long trend of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke speaking and the price of Gold moving dramatically held true after the Fed’s announcement earlier this week. The Gold price is up 2.7% since the announcement, and Daniel Briesemann of Commerzbank AG said, “The trigger offered by the Fed definitely helped. The opportunity costs of holding Gold will remain low in the future, and this should boost the attractiveness of Gold. We don’t see an end to the long-term uptrend in Gold prices.”

The next step for the revolution in Syria seems to be taking shape, as the U.N. Security Council is set to meet today to discuss the situation. A vote is possible next week in the U.N. on a new Western-Arab draft resolution with the goal of ending the bloodshed in Syria. The provision doesn’t seem to have the support it needs, as some countries including Russia have said the proposed political transition is necessary, but Russian officials in particular are taking issue with the fact that no sanctions are called for against President Bashar al-Assad’s government.

At 8 a.m. (CST), the APMEX precious metals spot prices were:

• Gold - $1,720.00 – Down $8.40.
• Silver - $33.40 – Down $0.42.
• Platinum - $1,610.80 – Down $7.00.
• Palladium - $682.30 – Down $13.20.