NOOB
11th June 2010, 03:57 PM
Europeans believing in gold
Gold hit a new intra-day high in U.S. dollars yesterday, but has been doing so in the European currencies for some weeks now.
Frank Holmes
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
www.mineweb.com
SAN ANTONIO (U.S. GLOBAL INVESTORS) -
Gold touched an intraday high of $1,254 in U.S. dollar terms yesterday but its appreciation in Europe's major currencies has been the story for the past few weeks.
A few weeks ago we showed a similar chart detailing gold's appreciation in major currencies but since then the deteriorating situation in Europe has sent gold soaring in terms of the euro and the British pound.
Since mid-April, gold has jumped 76.3 percent in euro terms and 60 percent in terms of the pound. This far outpaces gold's advances in terms of the U.S dollar (29.21 percent) and Japanese yen (18.96 percent). For the year, gold is up more than 111 percent in euro terms and 102 percent in pounds.
This illustrates the effect of currency debasement on gold prices. Greece and Spain's debt issues and the subsequent "fixes" by the European Union have raised questions about the long-term stability of the euro and sent investors looking for a hedge against monetary instability.
Not surprisingly, holdings in gold bullion-backed ETFs have hit a record and the SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) now holds more gold than all but five of the world's central banks.
It seems the masses are beginning to lose faith that policymakers will be able to correct the debt issues without debasing their currencies; as a result a new class of investors are turning to gold.
Frank Holmes is CEO and chief investment officer at U.S. Global Investors
The following securities mentioned in the article were held by one or more of U.S. Global Investors family of funds as of 3/31/10: SPDR Gold Trust.
Gold hit a new intra-day high in U.S. dollars yesterday, but has been doing so in the European currencies for some weeks now.
Frank Holmes
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
www.mineweb.com
SAN ANTONIO (U.S. GLOBAL INVESTORS) -
Gold touched an intraday high of $1,254 in U.S. dollar terms yesterday but its appreciation in Europe's major currencies has been the story for the past few weeks.
A few weeks ago we showed a similar chart detailing gold's appreciation in major currencies but since then the deteriorating situation in Europe has sent gold soaring in terms of the euro and the British pound.
Since mid-April, gold has jumped 76.3 percent in euro terms and 60 percent in terms of the pound. This far outpaces gold's advances in terms of the U.S dollar (29.21 percent) and Japanese yen (18.96 percent). For the year, gold is up more than 111 percent in euro terms and 102 percent in pounds.
This illustrates the effect of currency debasement on gold prices. Greece and Spain's debt issues and the subsequent "fixes" by the European Union have raised questions about the long-term stability of the euro and sent investors looking for a hedge against monetary instability.
Not surprisingly, holdings in gold bullion-backed ETFs have hit a record and the SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) now holds more gold than all but five of the world's central banks.
It seems the masses are beginning to lose faith that policymakers will be able to correct the debt issues without debasing their currencies; as a result a new class of investors are turning to gold.
Frank Holmes is CEO and chief investment officer at U.S. Global Investors
The following securities mentioned in the article were held by one or more of U.S. Global Investors family of funds as of 3/31/10: SPDR Gold Trust.