BLBG:Gold May Fall as Some Investors Sell Amid Europe Concerns
Gold may drop for the first time in five days in London as some investors sell the metal to cover losses in other assets amid concern about Europe’s debt crisis.
Global equities fell to a two-month low today amid mounting concern about Europe’s debt crisis and after a report last week that showed U.S. employers added fewer jobs in March than economists had forecast. Commodities reached a two-month low earlier today as Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said the nation’s future is on the line in its battle to tame surging bond yields.
“Europe could again become a major issue for the financial markets,” James Moore, an analyst at TheBullionDesk.com in London, said today in a report. “Should the situation deteriorate, gold could well be back under pressure again as funds and investors look to cash in liquid assets in order to cover margin commitments.”
Bullion for immediate delivery fell 0.2 percent to $1,656.27 an ounce by 11:11 a.m. in London. Prices gained for a fourth day yesterday, the longest winning streak since Feb. 23. June-delivery futures declined 0.2 percent to $1,657.20 on the Comex in New York.
Gold at the morning “fixing,” used by some mining companies to sell output, increased to $1,654 an ounce in London from $1,644 yesterday afternoon.
Holdings in bullion-backed exchange-traded products slipped 1.1 metric tons to 2,396.4 tons yesterday, about 0.6 percent below the March 13 record high, data compiled by Bloomberg show. Prices are up 5.9 percent in 2012 after advancing for 11 consecutive years.
Economy Minister Luis de Guindos declined to rule out a rescue for Spain and central bank Governor Miguel Angel Fernandez Ordonez said the nation’s lenders may need additional capital if the economy weakens more than expected.
Silver for immediate delivery dropped 0.4 percent to $31.6625 an ounce. Palladium slid 1.2 percent to $637.25 an ounce. Platinum was little changed at $1,597.25 an ounce after falling to $1,583, the lowest price since Jan. 31.
To contact the reporter on this story: Nicholas Larkin in London at nlarkin1@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Claudia Carpenter at ccarpenter2@bloomberg.net
