Hedge funds’ bullish bets on gold jump to four-year high
Hedge funds and other large speculators boosted their net-long position in gold.
Workers at the Indonesian mine owned by US-based Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. (NYSE: FCX) returned to work on Friday after a three-day strike over pay, AAP reports.
However the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is warning travellers to take extra care if touring in places close to Freeport’s Grasberg mine, located in the Indonesian province of Papua, on the western half of the island of New Guinea, following rising tensions on the area.
In an update released yesterday DFAT said it had received information that new attacks may be planned near the area of operation at Freeport.
The body said Aussie travellers should reconsider their intentions to visit the region because of the unrest, and attacks earlier this year had already resulted in the death of one Australian.
“Since July 2009, there has been a series of violent attacks in the area around the Freeport Mine in the Papua province,” the Government said.
“Attacks were reported in the area in March and April 2013. Further such attacks could occur.
About 1,100 contract employees stopped work Tuesday at the Grasberg mine — one of the largest gold and copper mines in the world — in the eastern province of Papua.
A three-month strike over wages by thousands of Freeport employees affected output from the mine in 2011 and ended with firm agreeing to a huge pay hike.
However, the company said this week’s strike caused only minimal disruption to the mine’s operations.
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