Gold hit a three-week high above $960 an ounce on Friday as buying linked to the weaker dollar pushed the metal through technical resistance, before paring gains after U.S. consumer sentiment data pressured the euro.
The Obama Administration is desperate for another couple of billion dollars added to the Cash-for-Clunkers coffer. Miners like North American Palladium (AMEX:PAL) want the money even more.
Gold and silver did virtually nothing throughout Far East and early European trading. But that all changed at 9:30 a.m. in New York, when JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM) pulled its bids and the prices of both metals fell off a cliff. What makes these guys look even more ridiculous is the fact that they pulled exactly the same procedure at exactly the same time on Monday…to the minute! These guys have no imagination at all.
The current economic conditions certainly do not provide any comfort for investors. So, if the economic news remains poor for the foreseeable future, should investors rule out the potential for a significant recovery in asset prices?
It was a mixed day for the precious metals as gold rose, but silver and platinum were both down slightly. Gold traded up during the pre-dawn hours before reaching an intraday high $851.22/oz. during the NYMEX session. While prices trended downward throughout afternoon trading gold still posted a gain of $9.90 to finish at $847.80/oz.
Gold pushed higher in Hong Kong, peaking at $755, then declined slowly until the late morning in New York, bottoming at $728, and finally rose again slowly through the Globex to finish at $743.80, up $15.20. Overnight, gold has edged higher.
Gold declined through the first hour of New York trading yesterday, briefly dipping below the $700 mark, but then pushed quickly back over $720 and spent most of the day hovering around that level, finishing at $721.10, down $7.10. Overnight, gold is sharply lower.
Gold traded in a directionless manner yesterday, remaining tightly rangebound between $790 and $808, and finishing at $800.40, down $4.50. Overnight, gold has pushed higher.
Gold held up near Monday’s holiday price until New York opened yesterday, whereupon it plummeted by $20 in the first hour, touching bottom at $790 before moving fitfully upward for the rest of the day and finishing at $804.90, down $25.20 from Friday. Overnight, gold has slipped lower.
Gold performed listlessly on Friday, as many traders quit their desks to get a jump on the Labor Day holiday weekend, leaving the metal to drift slowly south in thin trading and finish at $830.10, down $2.60. For the week, gold gained just under 1%.