Asia Gold-Higher prices dent demand

11 countries bought just under 58 tonnes of gold in March. That compares to combined purchases of 439.7 tonnes by the world's central banks last year. That already was an almost fifty year high.

Newcrest Mining, the world's No.3 gold miner, on Tuesday cut its production forecast for this year, saying its major projects had struggled to reach output targets.

It seems that investors have shrugged off the latest developments around the world, in particular the Eurozone and are looking for direction from the US Federal Reserve.

Nova Scotia's natural resources minister Cleve Higgins will have to decide soon whether an Australian mining conglomerate or a Christmas-tree family farm has the rights over eight-hectares of land in Moose River, near Middle Musquodoboit.

Google's billionaire co-founders Larry Page and Eric Schmidt and filmmaker James Cameron will officially announce today plans to mine asteroids. The company's presentation will be broadcast live today at 1:30 p.m. ET.

Nothing the company has done so far to assuage investors about its Aurora gold project has been successful and after dropping 5.5% on Monday it is now down over 60% since the start of the year.

World number one miner BHP Billiton on Monday bought five additional exploration plots near its giant Olympic Dam mine and expansion project, destined to become the world's largest open pit.

After a reasonably long period of sustained and occasionally dramatic escalations, commodity markets in general, and precious metals markets in particular, have declined. This is normal and healthy behavior, even if it is uncomfortable for some market participants.

Prosperity Goldfields Corp. ("Prosperity") (TSX VENTURE:PPG) andSmash Minerals Corp. ("Smash") (TSX VENTURE:SSH) provide an update on their amalgamation and the core drilling program at Prosperity's Kiyuk Lake gold property, Nunavut.