Column: Electric dreams turn into a nightmare for battery metals
A sector that was once racing to build new supply has been closing mines and deferring projects as low prices bite into the cost curve.
Gold held above $1,800 on Thursday after reaching that threshold for the first time since 2011 in the previous session, as concerns about the global economy linger to fuel gains for safe-haven assets.
Gold prices have soared more than 40% over the last 14 months and are within shouting distance of 2011’s record high of $1,920.30 an ounce. While spot gold declined 0.4% by 12:15 p.m. EDT, it held support above $1,800 per ounce for most of Thursday’s session.
Gold futures for August delivery were also down 0.7% on the Comex in New York, but still trading above $1,800 an ounce.
Demand for safe-haven assets has surged so far this year, with inflows into gold-backed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) over a half-year period already surpassing the record full-year total set more than a decade ago.
According to data compiled by the World Gold Council, funds storing gold on behalf of investors added 734 tonnes of gold worth $39.5 billion to their stockpile during the first six months of 2020.
Analysts are expecting further gains — potentially testing record highs — as investors stock up on assets that they expect to hold value while the coronavirus continues to shake up world economies.
“We’ll be challenging the $2,000 level by the end of the year,” Ross Norman, an independent analyst, told Reuters. “We are in a bull market for gold.”
Warren Patterson, head of commodities strategy at ING Groep NV in Singapore told Bloomberg that it seems as though “it is only a matter of time” before gold tests all-time highs.
“The case for gold holding above $1,800 is pretty strong, with the weaker US dollar, surging covid-19 cases, and some Fed officials questioning the US recovery”
Warren Patterson, head of commodities strategy at ING Groep NV
Financial investors, mainly in Europe and the US, have been on an unprecedented buying spree as fears of inflation and lower bond yields made the precious metal even more attractive.
According to Bridgewater Associates’s Ray Dalio, founder of the world’s largest hedge fund:
“Investors should favor stocks and gold over bonds and cash because the latter offer a negative rate of return and central banks will print more money”
“The previous record close of $1,900 is now in plain sight and we suspect gold might even attempt $2,000 before the end of 2020 if the number of US cases does not abate,” Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp. economist Howie Lee said in a note.
(With files from Bloomberg and Reuters)
