1  4  0 Google +0  0

 -- Published: Wednesday, 22 February 2017 | Print  | Comment - New! 

Gold Today –New York closed at $1,236.30 on the 21st February after closing at $1,239.00 on the 20th February. London opened at $1,235.00 today.

Overall the dollar was stronger against global currencies early today. Before London’s opening:

 -         The $: € was stronger at $1.0505: €1 from $1.0558: €1 on yesterday.

-         The Dollar index was stronger at 101.59 from 101.37 on yesterday. 

-         The Yen was stronger at 113.32:$1 from yesterday’s 113.56 against the dollar. 

-         The Yuan was stronger at 6.8818: $1, from 6.8866: $1, yesterday. 

-         The Pound Sterling was stronger at $1.2491: £1 from yesterday’s $1.2423: £1.

Yuan Gold Fix

Please note that the Shanghai Fixes are for 1 gm of gold. From the Middle East eastward metric measurements are used against 0.9999 quality gold. [Please note that the 0.5% difference in price can be accounted for by the higher quality of Shanghai’s gold on which their gold price is based over London’s ‘good delivery’ standard of 0.995.]

At the close in Shanghai today, the gold price was trading at 275.8 Yuan, which directly translates into $1,246.53. But allowing for the difference of gold being traded this equates to a price of $1,241.53. This is $5 higher than New York and $1 higher than London. We watch to see if London and New York continue to follow Shanghai or not.

LBMA price setting:  The LBMA gold price was set today at $1,237.50 up from yesterday’s $1,228.70. 

The gold price in the euro was set higher at €1,177.79 after yesterday’s€1,166.30.

Ahead of the opening of New York the gold price was trading at $1,237.70 and in the euro at €1,177.51.  At the same time, the silver price was trading at $18.00. 

Silver Today –Silver closed at $17.98 at New York’s close yesterdayagainst $18.03 on the 20th February.

Gold (very short-term) The gold price will consolidate, in New York today.      

Silver (very short-term) The silver price will consolidate, in New York today.

Price Drivers

With the gold price still struggling to break through $1,240 - $1,250 we expect the price to keep pushing higher against the dollar. It is rising well in all other currencies.

We all watch the gold price in dollars to see whether it is rising or falling. This way of thinking is deeply embedded, going back to the time when the dollar was entrenched as the world’s most important currency.

This has extended to each of us, looking first at our expectations of which way the gold price is going in the dollar, then our view of the currency under which we live, against the dollar. Our objective is to see how gold will perform in our currency [if it is not the dollar]. The separation of our currency against the dollar and the dollar against gold is because the dollar, right now, is the global currency. But this is waning. Indeed, the gold price in the dollar is slowly becoming a measure of the dollar against gold, not the other way around.

Over time as we move into a multi-currency system and when the biggest physical gold market, China, dominates the gold price [which is happening right now], we will have to shift our thinking back to measuring supply and demand for gold.

How will we see this measure the gold price? We have reported the alignment of the world’s three gold markets, London, New York and Shanghai as Shanghai gains in prominence. We are seeing far smaller impacts of speculative action, that dominates New York. We are seeing London’s bullion banks ensure they are as prominent in the Chinese market as they are in London. China has made speculative trading much more expensive than New York, and since then we see more stability in the gold price. This tells us the effect of the Chinese gold market is becoming easily visible.

In turn we see the gold price more effectively measuring the value of currencies, as it has over several millenniums. Today’s action shows the gold price rising in all currencies, but more in the euro than in the dollar. In other ‘soft’ currencies the gold price is an excellent hedge against a weakening currency and more so over the long term. Over the very long term the gold price outperforms most other investments. For instance in the early ‘70’s one investor bought a Krugerrand for R300, it is now priced at around R16,200.

Gold ETFs – Yesterday saw no sales or purchases from or into the SPDR gold ETF or the Gold Trust.  Their respective holdings are now at 841.169 tonnes and 201.38 tonnes. 

Since January 4th 2016, 241.939 tonnes of gold have been added to the SPDR gold ETF and to the Gold Trust.  Since January 6th 2017 31.858 tonnes have been added to the SPDR gold ETF and the Gold Trust.

Regards,

Julian D.W. Phillips