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Stocks And Euro Fall (€1,315/oz) As Possible Greek Default Looms
From GoldCore
Stocks And Euro Fall (€1,315/oz) As Possible Greek Default Looms
Gold’s London AM fix this morning was USD 1,717.00, EUR 1,315.31, and GBP 1,090.85 per ounce.
Friday's AM fix was USD 1759.50, EUR 1,335.48, and GBP 1,110.66 per ounce.
Gold has followed the now familiar trading pattern of gains in Asia followed by weakness in Europe. While gold has fallen and is weaker in most currencies gold remains higher in euro terms due to euro weakness on the concern of a Greek default.

Cross Currency Table – (Bloomberg)
Spot gold bounced back in Asian trading Monday as investors snatched up bargains after a 2% dip the previous session. The Greek debt debacle is still supporting the price as a deal remains elusive.
There continue to be concerns of a “Lehman moment” but markets remain fairly sanguine of a positive outcome despite the continual risk of a Greek default.
At 11.00 GMT German industrial orders will be published for market watchers. The US jobs data surprise released Friday boosted equities but bullion recorded its largest daily fall in a month.

XAU-EUR Exchange Rate – 30 Days (Bloomberg)
Gold remains an essential diversification as central banks keep money loose with record low interest rates and Asian powerhouses China and India still drive demand.
Silver has also fallen this morning. Barclays Capital, who have been quite bearish on silver in recent years, say that they are “expecting prices to rise in the next few sessions, along with gold, pegging silver's next resistance level at $35.70/oz and support near $33/oz.”
NEWSWIRE
(Bloomberg) -- Gold holdings in exchange-traded products backed by the precious metal expanded for a fourth day on Feb. 3 to 2,385.664 metric tons, data compiled by Bloomberg show. The assets are within 0.3 percent of a Dec. 13 record.
(Bloomberg) -- Hedge-fund managers and other large speculators increased their net-long position in New York gold futures in the week ended Jan. 31, according to U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission data.
Speculative long positions, or bets prices will rise, outnumbered short positions by 171,359 contracts on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, the Washington-based commission said in its Commitments of Traders report. Net-long positions rose by 29,136 contracts, or 20 percent, from a week earlier.
Miners, producers, jewelers and other commercial users were net-short 209,862 contracts, an increase of 30,094 contracts, or 17 percent, from the previous week.
(Bloomberg) -- Zimbabwe’s mining ministry has raised license fees by as much as 5,000 percent, the state-controlled Sunday Mail said, citing a government decree.
Registration of diamond mining licenses, known as claims, will rise to $5 million from $1 million, while an application for a platinum mining license has increased to $500,000 from $200, the Harare-based Sunday Mail said on its website. Should the application be successful, the license to operate a platinum mine will climb to $2.5 million from $500, the Sunday Mail added.
The increase in fees, published by the government, has been criticized by both small-scale and large-scale miners, the Sunday Mail said.
Zimbabwe has the world’s second-largest platinum reserves after neighboring South Africa.
(Bloomberg) -- Nationalization of platinum assets, a 50 percent windfall tax and a reduction in royalty taxes were recommended by a study ordered by South Africa’s ruling African National Congress, City Press reported, citing the report.
The windfall tax of up to 50 percent should be imposed on superprofits, which the report defined as a return on investment of 22 percent, in return for investment in infrastructure and a reduction in the overall tax rate, the Johannesburg-based newspaper said. Royalty taxes should be cut to 1 percent from 4 percent and platinum, regarded as South Africa’s sovereign resource, should be nationalized through “targeted interventions,” according to the study, City Press said.
(Bloomberg) -- Sudan is expected to earn $2.5 billion from gold exports this year, President Umar al-Bashir said at a Cabinet meeting today in Khartoum, the capital.
The increased income from the metal will help offset the decline in revenue from oil exports following the secession of South Sudan last year, Bashir said.
(Bloomberg) -- Harmony Gold Mining Co. Chief Executive Officer Graham Briggs said gold may average $1,850 an ounce in the company’s fiscal year through June 30 and could rise to $2,000 around the end of calendar 2012.
(Reuters) - Harmony Gold, South Africa's third-largest bullion miner, cut its full-year production target by 13 percent on Monday, as safety stoppages threatened to crimp a surge in profit from record gold prices.
Harmony, which more than doubled its second quarter earnings compared with the first quarter as it reaped the benefits of a weak rand and a sky-high gold price, said shutdowns because of fatalities could take some lustre off its future output.
South Africa's government has been clamping down on miners to cut their accident rates, leading to lower output. Mines are usually shut down for several days at a time following a fatality.
(Reuters Global Gold Forum) - Bullion prices may be slightly down at heel today but HSBC's outlook is sharpening the bull's horns: "Two by products of the global financial crisis are declines in investor confidence and eroding trust in the financial system and government policies. The climate is conducive to investors to re-establish and build long positions in the bullion market."

Reuters graphic/Vincent Flasseur
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SILVER
Silver is trading at $33.40/oz, €25.61/oz and £21.21/oz.
PLATINUM GROUP METALS
Platinum is trading at $1,606.25/oz, palladium at $691/oz and rhodium at $1,400/oz.
NEWS
(BusinessWeek)
Gold May Extend Gains From Two-Month High on Europe Debt Concern
(MarketWatch)
Gold, silver futures fall in Asian trading
(Reuters)
Gold rebounds after heavy loss; Asia rushes to buy
(The Economic Times)
Asia Gold price drop prompts buying; seasonal lull caps interest
(CNN)
States seek currencies made of silver and gold
COMMENTARY
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Global Central Planning Groundhog Day ... Look at Gold
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Richard Russell - Watch Gold, 2012 Fated to be a Monster Year
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Pento - Bond Bubble to Destroy US Dollar & Restore Gold
(Lars Schall)
No More Answers from Mr. Volcker
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I say let em crash http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pn0WdJx-Wkw&feature=related
Where's my money! I'm getting tired of you ducking me man! http://www.evtv1.com/player.aspx?itemnum=5777
"They think, that we think that the unthinkable cannot be thought. But they better think again," the first official said.
I think I need more coffee before I try to think about what they thought they were thinking.
Who is to say that the "unthinkable" is in fact Greece NOT defaulting ?!
This yet again is starting to have all the hallmarks of a bear trap. Watch them either change the rules again or come out with a statement in the coming days saying that Greece has done enough or will do enough or has promised to do enough to get their bailout monies.
Failing that, I am in no doubt that between the Fed, the IMF, The ECB, China .... someone will come up with the money needed ... just in time.
'Wash, rinse, repeat' was it?
What Greece should do is to act all penitent and then implement all the stopgaps needed to get their latest loan payment. Then just say, "fuck you" and default as soon as they receive the funds.
And just how long does this new bailout last? 6 months? 12? Then they come back to the brink, ready to default again? Except each year that goes by, they are 20% of GDP further in debt?
If the US Economy is stronger than that of the EU, why has gasoline consumption dropped like a rock? Perhaps, like the grossly fudged BLS jobs report, all data produced by any US Gov agency is useless?
BTW, if the jobs report is correct how are the working people getting to work? They certainly are not using gasoline... Maybe tanks filled with hopium? Hat tip to Mish...
"Huge Plunge In Gasoline and Petroleum Useage"
"As I have been telling you recently, there is some unprecedented data coming out in petroleum distillates, and they slap me in the face and tell me we have some very bad economic trends going on, totally out of line with such things as the hopium market - I mean stock market.
This past week I actually had to reformat my graphs as the drop off peak exceeded my bottom number for reporting off peak - a drop of ALMOST 4,000,000 BARRELS PER DAY off the peak usage in our past for this week of the year.
I have added a new graph to my distillates report, a "Graph of Raw Data" to which I have added a polynomial trendline. You can easily see that the plunge is accelerating and more than rivals 2008/09 and in gasoline is greatly exceeding the rate.
An amazing thing to note is that in two out of the last three weeks gasoline usage has dropped below 8,000,000 barrels per day.
The last time usage fell that low was the week of September 21, 2001! And you know what that week was! Prior to that you have to go back to 1996 to have a time period truly consistently below 8,000. We have done it two out of the last three weeks."
full report plus graphs here... http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2012/02/huge-plunge-in-petroleum-and-gasoline.html
Snidley, perhaps the gasoline consumption in the US dropped because this is the number one personal consumption/budget item where the typical US citizen can cut most?
Americans drive in average 13'400 miles per year, you know?
Ghordius... Granted gas consumption is somewhat fungible. But, the current levels of decline in gas consumption I'm relaying, combined with other data I watch, is sending me a message that is in conflict with BLS 'data'.
I pay more attention to numbers that are difficult to fudge... actual sales taxes collected by states, actual fed income taxes collected, actual fuel consumption, actual property taxes collected by counties (even though rates have increased), actual homes closed on, YOY same store sales (even though many competitors have closed) rail freight milage, Baltic Dry, etc.
BTW, when the author refers to distillates he is referring to all products made from a bbl of crude and this includes diesel for heavy hauling by trucks and trains. Diesel consumption is an important stat (subject to inventory build/decline) to watch for future retail activity... imo.
>> why has gasoline consumption dropped like a rock?
Cash for clunkers?
Why does it "appear" that the U.S. Economy is "stronger"?
Why despite lower gas utilization does the MSM eat the hashish laced fudge released by the BLS?
Why do markets keep going up despite a lack of trust and real recovery?
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_wkgIzuqJM0w/TJnEub6PlHI/AAAAAAAAGRc/EomkYx0wEf...
Euro falls - where does this leave the Swiss?
What about when the news from greece is bad @12 - will the SNB still "buy with both hands"?
International currency wars
Lower Euro helps Germany out immensly. This is why their latest industrial reports are showing recovery. The last thing Germany wants is to go back to the Dmark. They have to decide which is worse heavy debt of others that may hurt them later or low Euro now.
When does this show end?
This is the European Union - all deadlines are elastic
...and then it breaks and snaps in their faces. Then it will be game over.
It can't break or snap only bend like bamboo. I remember way back when the euro was supposed to be the next reserve currency... crazy times... 2004
By 11:00 a.m. of Feb. 6th!
Well, perhaps we will wait until after lunch.
What? It was supposed to be the 8th? Oh.
Yes, by 1:00 p.m. on March 8th!
This is your last warning!
April 10th at 2:00 p.m. or else!
Globally coordinated...all you need to know is simple; there is a script already written on what is going to happen...we just haven't been told yet.
Global central planning because they can...go back to sleep....sleep...sleep...sleep...zzz
Now they tell us, the deadline was only a rumour and they have time until the next "Euro Group" meeting.
http://www.ftd.de/politik/europa/:schuldenkrise-keine-frist-fuer-griechen-einigung/60164666.html
You cannot make this up.
No wonder, I was just venting about that (and I did read lates news looking for something like this some 45min ago).
Those thieving scumbags!
It gets better: http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/feb/06/greece-bailout-talks-euro...
Senior officials are confirming that there is concensus among Greece's politicial party chiefs to accept the conditions and terms attached to Athens' next bailout program. "They have accepted the basic principles ...
WTF?! They were all against more austerity yesterday! And the finance minister was supposed to leave if last night would not be a break through!
Take us out of our misery damned!
We accept the basic principles; however, the details are completely unacceptable. Those, we will have to work on.
We agree we have to spend less than we make; that is obvious. However, we simply cannot accept cutting any spending or raising any taxes.
WTF, we're hours past the deadline from yesterday and no news yet?
What is the EU up to now - kidnapping children of Greek negotiators?
This is way past surreal. I am sure in some dimension there is a world in which it's still (and always) Monday 7am in Athens. Bullshit.
hahaha fool me twice
euro and metals back up bitchez, gonna be an interesting US open
Apart from any industrial/financial disconnect between the old world economies & the more dynamic eastern ones, my focus is increasingly drawn to what happens in Asia and more importantly perhaps, what they do in response to our economic woes & desperate sovereign debt 'deck chair arranging'. That is, moving away from the dollar towards a gold backed yuan/rupee world - small indicators for me are the PAGE & increasing appetite for PMs from China/India/Hong Kong/ Taiwan, together with the move from the petrodollar & more bilateral deals in the non-reserve currency. I don't really care about the LBM or Comex paper prices anymore - except as prompters for me to cost average down. What's Mandarin for Gold Bitchez?
???????
?? Hwangjin
?? Hwangjin
I think we'll all need to practise our pronunciation of that, as time goes on.
So Barclays, who was bearish on silver throughout its rise from 28 to 34, is now bullish on silver.......do I need to go on?????
My thoughts exactly. Banksters' predictions of prices, especially short-term predictions, are not to be trusted!
Gold as money has little value if it sits in one place-- velocity is the watch word-- trading it gives commercial value. Hording ala the "eastern powerhouses" is good for doweries but little else. Sitting in your vault and watching it gleem is a perception of wealth --you can starve doing it. The tick to watch is trade and a screen to see it on is Balric Dry-- Lower lows and Lower highs. The trend is less commerce across water. If -and its a big if-- the "Eastern powerhouses" can energize their mercentile economies by selling their products internally then they may be able to "rescue" the rest of the world and jump start world economies--
Financials have been touted technically as the first movers in a trend. If they are a precusor to trading trends then the outlook is bleak as financial markets are broken. Trading is coming to a halt everywhere. Central banks try to move money by making it cheap but that just makes investores hunker down and leave the markets because true value cannot be discovered. The only place for stock piled money is in a percieved safe haven --or transfer to PM. The problem is getting out of PMs when you need to. Buying stuff you need like machines or transportation will rapidly eat into that pile of PMs.
Congrats... You have won my award for the longest post that contained not one iota of useful information. Not just anyone can win this award!
Feel free to post more useless blather... All are welcome here... BTW I did not leave you a NEG even though you deserve one... or more.
Good Morning Snidley--- ok short version-- gold ain't worth shit if you can't sell it-- selling depends on markets -- markets are broke--Baltic Dry is a signal and is trending down. Financials are a signal and are dropping is real value. Mercantile nations --China, India, Germany, Japan are losing their customers. Things that are slowing down eventually stop. Get things you need before you can't. IMHO gold aint one of them. But then again if all you have is Euros you're screwed anyway.
"Better to keep your mouth closed and be thought a fool than to open it and remove all doubt"
G Speed... Good morning to you...
Here is my even shorter version... Gold NEVER goes to zero value.
ALL other assets, with the exception of arable/productive farm land, have at times gone to zero.
However, I agree with you about being prepared for as many eventualities as one possibly can.
It's sort of like the street savvy criminal I once heard deliver a bit of advice to a wannabe... "When you set out to do a crime there are at least 100 things that can go wrong. If you can think of 25 of them, you are a genius."
Sell gold, buy treasuries! Hahaha. Thanks very much, I'm holding my physical.
navy---If you are replying to me you miss my point-- I don't think T bills are a good place for my money--I am buying a set of tires for my trucks before I need them--and spare parts for machines before they break. I have been stock piling raw material and tooling. IMHO the just in time supply model will fail as comerce slows down. Overseas supply chains will break and new supply sources will take a lot of time to construct. The best thing to be in is a cash business that deals in things people need. For me its better to have 50 tons of rebar in my warehouse than 10 oz of gold in my safe.
A good point & strategy. I pre-bought a new set of tyres with my last new set as premium tyres seem to suffer huge inflation (deffo no pun intended..) & it's a worthwhile saving to make when you buy a year before you need them.
JIT production/warehousing stategies guarantee you'll pay top dollar as all are current prices with little slack for discounting. I pre-buy other non-perishables too in an attempt to hedge the inflation in our
biflationary world.
+1 for the unintended pun!
confusion is a weapon..the pols across the globe are confused ala the current greek bailout drama.
lying is a responce when you are confused as to the outcome of the issue at hand. (BLS/MSM/FED)
maintaining one's power and wealth is job one for the elites. (TBTF/FED/Washington DC)
they remain confused as to how to do it, seems the plans are full of unintended outcomes..business not responding with investments or hiring. as new tax and regulation loom.
resonance pings back and forth across the globe..if I am right the peaks will merge and then "unintended" is the
the new New thing. gov's will fall, media will be destroyed as the lies they were spinning are now plain to everyman.
invest wisely will become the joke of the decade. some will do well but it will be by chance not intent.
Anyone else long zinc?