Gold hits 3-week high on Iraq; platinum group metals up

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SINGAPORE - Gold hit its highest in nearly three weeks on Monday, as turmoil in Iraq supported the metal's safe-haven appeal, while platinum group metals gained ahead of the outcome of wage talks to end a five-month long strike in South African mines.

Spot gold rose 0.1 percent to $1,278.21 an ounce by 0020 GMT, after hitting $1,278.74 earlier in the session �� the highest since late May.

Sunni insurgents seized a mainly ethnic Turkmen city in northwestern Iraq on Sunday after heavy fighting, solidifying their grip on the north after a lightning offensive that threatens to dismember Iraq.

Gold is seen as a safe-haven asset at times of geopolitical uncertainties.

Hedge funds and money managers increased their bullish bets in gold futures and options in the week to June 10, their first increase in five weeks, according to data from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission on Friday.

Among other precious metals, platinum and palladium gained about 1 percent each on Monday after logging sharp declines last week on easing supply worries.

The leader of South Africa's AMCU union said on Friday a wage deal with the top three platinum producers was imminent, signalling a possible end to a crippling five-month strike that
has disrupted global output of the metal.

Source : Reuters

Oil Rises on Iraq Violence as Palladium Jumps; Asian Stocks Drop

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Oil rose and palladium led precious metals higher as the escalation of violence in Iraq stoked concern crude supplies will be disrupted and boosted the appeal of haven assets. Asian stocks retreated with U.S. index futures.

Brent oil rose 0.5 percent to $113.05 a barrel by 9:50 a.m. in Tokyo as West Texas Intermediate crude added 0.4 percent in a fourth day of gains. Palladium rose 0.9 percent and gold touched an almost three-week high. The yen gained with U.S. Treasuries and Australian bonds. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index dropped 0.2 percent after five weeks of gains, as Japan��s Topix index fell 0.4 percent. Standard & Poor��s 500 Index futures lost 0.3 percent after the benchmark U.S. gauge rebounded June 13.

The army killed more than 279 rebels yesterday in Iraq, OPEC��s second-largest producer, as the prospect of civil war intensifies with Sunni Muslim insurgents controlling territory north of Baghdad. In Ukraine, tensions escalated at the weekend with 49 servicemen killed when pro-Russia fighters shot down a plane. India is projected to report faster wholesale-price growth for May today, while in the U.S., factory data is due before the Federal Reserve reviews policy later this week.

Source Bloomberg

Gold Posts Second Weekly Gain as Iraq Violence Sparks Demand

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Gold futures capped a second straight weekly gain as escalating violence in Iraq boosted demand for the precious metal as a haven. Silver posted the longest rally in almost four months.

Crude oil jumped to the highest in more than eight months on concern that a civil war looms in Iraq, OPEC��s second-biggest producer. Gold gained 6 percent this year, partly because of escalating tensions between Ukraine and Russia.

Gold futures for August delivery gained less than 0.1 percent to settle at $1,274.10 an ounce at 1:41 p.m. on the Comex in New York, capping a fifth straight gain and the longest rally in three months. The price today reached $1,277.60, and rose 1.7 percent this week.

Trading was 45 percent below the average for the past 100 days for this time, according to data compiled by Bloomberg, while the 60-day historical volatility fell to the lowest since April 2013.
Silver futures for July delivery rose 0.6 percent to $19.655 an ounce. The price climbed for the fifth straight session, the longest rally since Feb. 18.

Oil futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange reached $107.68 a barrel, the highest since Sept. 19. Saudi Arabia is the biggest producer in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

On the Nymex, platinum futures for July delivery fell 0.4 percent to $1,435 an ounce.
Yesterday, the price tumbled 2.7 percent as mining companies and union officials in South Africa agreed on a wage pact to present to workers in a bid to end a 20-week strike that has crippled output. The nation is the world��s largest platinum producer and second-biggest for palladium.

   
Source : Bloomberg

Bank of Japan holds fire on stimulus

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The Bank of Japan on Friday held off expanding its stimulus programme and said the world's number three economy was recovering, despite fears a sales tax rise will dent growth.

Policymakers unanimously agreed to hold off any further measures after a two-day meeting. Investors are now awaiting a statement by BoJ governor Haruhiko Kuroda at about 3:30 pm local time (0630 GMT).

The widely expected move comes as the US Federal Reserve winds down its own stimulus and just over a week after the European Central Bank launched unprecedented easing measures to counter the threat of deflation in the eurozone.

Japanese central bankers have held steady since launching a huge monetary easing blitz in April last year as they gauge the impact of a recent sales tax hike that has threatened to derail the country's nascent recovery.

On Friday, the BoJ acknowledged that consumer demand and industrial production had taken a hit after the April 1 tax hike, prior to which millions of shoppers went on a buying spree.

"Japan's economy is expected to continue a moderate recovery as a trend, while it will be affected by the subsequent decline in demand following the front-loaded increase prior to the consumption tax hike," the bank said in a statement.

Policymakers noted that overseas economies, particularly among major industrialised nations, were also recovering "albeit with a lacklustre performance still seen in part".

The BoJ's target of achieving 2.0 percent inflation by next year was also on course, it said.

Source : AFP