BS: Gold Rebounds on Demand for Alternative Investment to Euro
By Pham-Duy Nguyen
May 17 (Bloomberg) -- Gold futures climbed for the first time in three sessions on demand for an alternative to the euro.
Gold denominated in euros rose to a record after the 16- nation currency fell as much as 1 percent against the dollar amid concern Europe’s sovereign-debt crisis will devalue the currency.
“If you’re holding euros, you’re losing money every day,” said Frank Lesh, a trader at FuturePath Trading LLC in Chicago. “Gold is a currency play. Funds have an interest in gold because it’s holding its value and going higher.”
Gold futures for June delivery rose $7.90, or 0.6 percent, to $1,235.70 an ounce at 10:17 a.m. on the Comex in New York. The metal reached a record $1,249.70 on May 14.
The euro was little changed, erasing earlier losses. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Chief Global Economist Jim O’Neill said it is “ridiculous” to suggest that the euro area will break up within the next year and predicted the currency’s decline may be almost over.
--With assistance from Mark Deen in Paris and Sara Eisen in New York. Editors: Patrick McKiernan, Steve Stroth
To contact the reporter on this story: Pham-Duy Nguyen in Seattle at pnguyen@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Steve Stroth at sstroth@bloomberg.net
