Mining’s old guard needs strong medicine
A new report details subpar investor returns in the mining industry over the last decade, particularly big cap diversified companies which have not adapted to new realities.
The UK Royal Mint said Friday it is experiencing an unprecedented increase in gold coins and bars demand following the Bank of England’s decision to slash interest rates to 0.25% on August 4.
Transactions on the Mint’s bullion website increased by 25% during the first week of August and there was a 50% weekly jump in sales of gold bars and coins compared to the previous week, IBT reported.
After the Bank of England’s announcement, the Mint saw a 25% increase in transactions and a 50% rise in sales of gold bars and coins compared to the week before.
The news comes on the heels of a World Gold Council report showing that global investment demand for gold had hit a record level in the first six months of the year.
Gold prices have surged 27% so far this year amid global economic growth concerns and low interest. The metal’s good run year to date – one of the best performances in decades – has surprised many analysts and even exceeded some gold bugs’ expectations.
However consumer demand in countries such as India and China, traditionally among the strongest buyers of gold, was lower. According to the WGC, total demand fell 30% in the first half of the year to 247.4 tonnes from a year ago, the lowest since 2009.
Comments
Daniel Perez
yet “someone” (bis, fed, central banks; et al) dumps $5 Billion of paper gold on the market in London after european close yesterday in like 2 minutes?