Closing Gold & Silver Market Report – 4/4/2013

Brandi Brundidge

4/4/2013 4:02:00 PM

INVESTORS ANTICIPATE PAYROLL REPORT

Gold continued to feel pressure today from the strengthening U.S. dollar.  The market overlooked news coming from central bank policy meetings that saw the Bank of Japan state they will advocate further monetary easing as the European Central Bank holds steady to its policy.  “We have a lot of liquidation of the Gold ETFs and the short position on the Comex for Gold remains very high, so a lot of the macro hedge fund selling have put pressure on Gold,” HSBC Metals Analyst Howard Wen said. Investors await Friday’s U.S. employment data, which will be yet another factor to show if the economy is developing at a successful rate. 

The Labor Department announced today the number of unemployment claims increased by 28,000 to an adjusted total of 385,000, its highest level since November.  After an upturn for job growth in February, it appears that the job market staggered in March, as data released Wednesday showed that private employers added fewer jobs during March than in the previous five months.  Analysts have predicted that the increase in jobless benefits could be coming from government budget cuts, which included heavy layoffs. “You might be getting some effects from the sequester and the tax hikes earlier this year,” Scott Brown, chief economist at Raymond James in St. Petersburg, Fla., said.

At 5 p.m. (EDT), the APMEX Precious Metals spot prices were:

• Gold, $1,555.90, Up $0.90.
• Silver, $26.97, Up $0.07.
• Platinum, $1,524.50, Down $17.40.
• Palladium, $728.50, Down $27.00.

APMEX’s Account Managers now have extended hours Mondays through Thursdays and are here to serve you until 7 p.m. (CDT)! Or call us Fridays until 5 p.m. (CDT)! 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