Nippon Steel hires Mike Pompeo to advise on US Steel deal
Nippon Steel also faces objections from the powerful United Steelworkers (USW) union, which fears the deal could lead to job losses.
Gold was last trading at $1,222 an ounce in New York, giving up some of the gains enjoyed since the start of the year.
Ross Norman, CEO Sharps Pixley, tells TimesTV the gold market at the moment is a story of two halves.
With short positions in gold on the New York Comex market at near record highs traders want to see “the bottom ground out of the market,” and gold could test its recent lows of $1,180 or go even lower in the short term.
However, says Norman, Asian demand will continue to strengthen as India revisits its curbs on gold imports and China enters the year of the horse which is auspicious for gold.
Norman says the current agreement on lower prices for gold is a good sign for contrarians and expects gold to rise modestly towards the end of year:
“This year will be something of a Goldilocks year – not too hot and not too cold.”
