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Gold futures posted modest gains Friday as a report of a slowdown in second-quarter GDP growth triggered a fall in the dollar.
Gold for August delivery settled up $2.30 at $634.80 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, a gain of 2.4% on the week.
The overall bias in the market for the time being remains a bit negative, as evidence continues to point to a softer jewelry market in the wake of the spectacular rises in gold prices achieved .
On the currency markets, the dollar dropped to a more than two-week low versus the yen and was also sharply lower against other major currencies Friday in response to the slowdown in GDP growth, which reinforced expectations that the monetary tightening campaign of the Federal Reserve is approaching its end. GDP grew at a real 2.5% annual rate in the second quarter after a torrid 5.6% pace in the first quarter. Economists expected a reading of 3.0%.
With today's action putting the dollar in significantly oversold territory, there's a pretty good chance of a turnaround in the dollar near-term, If this occurs, it will most likely put pressure on the metals complex, the metals will probably move further downward before they are able to mount a sustainable rally.
The United States and Britain have come under pressure because of their opposition to an immediate cease-fire. Bush and Blair again insisted on Friday that root cause of the violence -- the domination of southern Lebanon by Hezbollah -- has to be resolved before a cease-fire can be enforced.
In a separate development, the U.S. State Department said it was "outrageous" for Israel to suggest that the world has authorized it to continue its military strikes against Lebanon. On Thursday, Israel's justice minister said that the failure of the Rome international crisis conference to reach agreement on a cease-fire was interpreted by Israel as a "permission from the world" to carry on its attacks against Hezbollah.
A fresh supply of contradictory statements and warnings surrounding the Middle East crisis continue to keep traders confused as well as nervous.
On the supply side, gold inventories were flat at 8.1 million troy ounces as of late Thursday, according to Nymex data. Silver supplies fell by 1.26 million troy ounces to 100.6 million, while copper supplies were flat at 6,767 short tons. |
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