Commentary for Friday, Feb 28, 2014 – Gold drifted lower into the weekend down $10.20 at $1321.40. Lower prices are a combination of short-term profit taking and a semi-reversal of trading sentiment after the market failed to move higher on expectations. But even with all the commotion gold only finished down $2.50 on the week supported by a generally weaker dollar and this was the first weekly decline in gold in a month. Fourth quarter Gross Domestic Product was revised downward from 3.2% to 2.4% and a read on inflation was higher than expected, the index up 1.5%.
Silver closed down $00.11 at $21.20 and the physical market seems quiet although the general availability of 1 and 10 oz silver bars seems tighter. There is no real shortage and you should not encounter delivery delays as this is a temporary manufacturing problem. If your interested in silver the 90% Silver Bag is great for investors.
Platinum closed down $6.00 at $1447.00 and palladium was up $2.00 at $744.00. The South African miners strike now in its 5th week remains contentious. Demands for higher wages are met with threats of mine closures.
The 30 day chart for gold clearly looks like it is flattening out below $1340.00 so profit taking is the order of the day. And as momentum slows remember we have moved from $1260.00 (early February) to recent highs of $1340.00 (late February) and so are still sitting on substantial paper profits for floor traders ($80.00). This could easily push them to the sidelines if gold fails to produce new bullish headlines. Also note that further sell-off below $1320.00 produces the possibility that a bearish head and shoulder formation might be developing which could negatively impact computer traders. On the shorter term however the 5 day dollar index is significantly lower supporting gold and oil remains higher pushed by positive consumer confidence. It is also amazing that even at these discounted numbers trader sentiment can still move from bullish and happy to negative and dark in the matter of days. Because of this more patience than ever is needed especially when it comes to physical ownership. It should be clear by now that gold is on sale so take advantage if you are so inclined and don’t be too moved one way of the other with day to day commentary.
In the Kitco News Gold Survey, out of 33 participants, 19 responded this week. Six see prices up, while 12 see prices down and one sees prices trading sideways or neutral. Market participants include bullion dealers, investment banks, futures traders and technical-chart analysts. Last week, participants were bullish. As of noon EST, Comex April gold prices were up about $1 an ounce on the week. Several survey participants forecast lower gold prices for next week, saying that the yellow metal is due for a correction. “Gold (is) to trade lower in the week ahead, with a target around $1,300,” said Ken Morrison, editor of online newsletter Morrison on the Markets. “It’s not so much a call on gold as it is a belief commodities in general are set up for a pullback. Bullish sentiment on the CRB Index reached the highest level since April 2011 this week and (a) number of markets are showing signs of ‘buyer-fatigue’ as we close out the week,” Morrison said. A few others point out a lack of physical buying in Asian markets as prices rose will hamper gold rallies. Participants who see higher prices said the near-term technical-chart trend remains fairly robust. Also, unrest in several emerging market countries underpins gold. “The trend is up because of Ukrainian problems with the Russians, emerging-nations worries as the U.S. cuts back on stimulus, a return to a weaker trend in the U.S. dollar and fears that the stock markets are running into resistance. In the long run, this trend could get quite dramatic if the massive amounts of stimulus funds are allowed to get into the public’s hands…. Short term, the market may be a little overbought but if the Russians get antsy about the situation in the Ukraine, they could step up their pressure in a more physical way,” said Bob Tebbutt of ARMOUR Asset Risk Management.
The rain in LA is severe by our standards so the walk-in cash trade is very slow. Phones are also below normal for a Friday. The GoldDealer.com Activity Scale is a “3” for Friday. The CNI Activity Scale takes into consideration volume and the hedge book: (last Friday – 5) (last Monday – 5) (last Tuesday – 4) (last Wednesday – 3) (Thursday – 3). Our scale (1 through 10) is a reliable way to understand volume numbers.
On the new GoldDealer.com site: Comex closing prices are posted on the home page and individual product landing pages. Live pricing on the site moves all bullion products up or down during the day. The change number included next to the live pricing uses yesterday’s Comex closing prices as a reference. So if the change number is green and shows up $3.00 this is in reference to yesterday’s close. You now don’t have to visit several sites to find the Comex close relative to live trading numbers which are independently verified.
We reworked the All Bullion Products link on the home page. It now includes our Bid (blue) and Ask (green) prices. When you hover over it with your cursor the text is highlighted.
Premium quotes vary with product and look like this – “spot plus $15.00” or “spot plus $50.00” and bullion products list them under the live prices on their respective landing pages. This makes product comparison easy and GoldDealer.com is the only precious metal site on the net with this transparency. For example click on the link American Gold Eagle and under Our Live Buy Price and Our Live Sell Price you will see: our Buy Premium Spot + $15.00 and our Sell Premium Spot + $50.00 – Easy.
Live Chat is doing well and new customers like setting up their own encrypted accounts. Improvements will continue through the 1st quarter of 2014. Let us know what you want. We recommend upgrading old browsers to Google Chrome (free/secure) especially as our site becomes more advanced.
Sign up for our daily Gold Newsletter on the Gold Newsletter page if you are so inclined and remember this is now live for you too so why not sound off? Reader insight is interesting and varied.
Email confirmation when you are buying or selling is functional. A PDF file will be added which will create a picture invoice identical to the store invoice. This invoice will include information like wiring instructions.
The four flat screens downstairs with live independent pricing (The Bullion Desk) is a big hit with the cash trade. This live stream moves all the buy/sell prices on each product so the cash buying public can see the markets move on a real time basis. Our site uses the same pricing model so no more guessing.
Our best price guarantee (buying or selling) remains famous so call Kenny toll free (1-800-225-7531). We have guaranteed complete satisfaction for 30 years, same place, same people, no changes in management and no nonsense. Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @CNI_golddealer. Thanks for reading and enjoy weekend.
Today the popular seller was the Canadian Silver Maple Leaf 1 oz
