Trafigura rattles zinc market with huge order for LME metal
Orders to withdraw zinc from warehouses overseen by the exchange have surged by 97,225 tons over the past two days.
Spot gold jumped just over 1% or $16 an ounce on Friday bringing its two-day gains to almost $50 an ounce.
Gold ended the week at $1,590.80, recovering from an intra-day low Wednesday of $1,528 as investors sold the precious metal to cover losses elsewhere.
That level briefly signaled a bear market with the precious metal 20% below the record of $1,913 hit on August 23 last year.
The sharp turnaround in sentiment in the bullion market has some asking whether the rally is a dead cat bounce or perhaps the best chance to buy before prices rocket.
Gold bulls say a new round of monetary easing in the US – a distinct possibility – and possible similar programs in the crisis-ridden Eurozone will restore the yellow metal’s status as an inflation hedge and wealth preserver.
Flooding markets with cheap money would also hurt the dollar, further boosting the metal’s price.
Read more about QE in the EU, Grexit and Operation Twist and the effect on the gold price here >>
