Mid-Day Gold & Silver Market Report, 7/26/2012

Brandi Brundidge

7/26/2012 12:03:00 PM

STRONG EURO CONTINUES TO BOOST GOLD  

Gold is holding on to morning gains following comments by the president of the European Central Bank, which have buoyed the euro for a second day. “You’ve got a rise in the euro, which means a weaker dollar, and a ‘risk on’ environment, so everything that looks like a risky asset goes up. Gold has been trading just like a commodity (lately) and is behaving like one today,” Natixis analyst Nic Brown said.

European Central Bank President Mario Draghi has stated that as part of the ECB’s effort to protect the survival of the euro, it will be buying Spanish and Italian government bonds. This move also is believed to help lower borrowing costs. “Within our mandate, the ECB is ready to do whatever it takes to preserve the euro,” Draghi said at an investor conference in London. “And believe me, it will be enough.”

Business investment is looking to be cooler in the second half of the year, as orders for business equipment dropped in June. Lower American consumer spending and overseas demand have many companies delaying replacing equipment. “Business investment has definitely shifted lower,” said Tom Porcelli, chief United States economist at RBC Capital Markets LLC in New York. The European debt crisis and the looming “fiscal cliff” will “put downward pressure on orders, which will translate into weaker growth in the U.S.,” Porcelli said.

At 1 p.m. (EDT), the APMEX Precious Metals spot prices were:

• Gold, $1,615.90, Up $5.80.
• Silver, $27.58, Up $0.02.
• Platinum, $1,404.60, Up $5.20.
• Palladium, $570.90, Up $4.60.

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