Hedge funds slash bullish wagers on gold over Trump election win
Hedge funds and other large speculators boosted net-long positions by 11% to 197,362 as of Nov. 12, the lowest in 14 weeks.
Billionaire hedge fund manager John Paulson lost over $300 million of his personal wealth and his investors lost $62 million on Friday as gold tumbled to nearly 2-year lows, reports Katherine Burton for Bloomberg.
Eighty-five percent of Paulson & Co.’s $9.5 billion is invested in gold share classes with the biggest stake held in AngloGold Ashanti. AngloGold’s share price fell 5.6% in the midst of Friday’s sell-off.
The past couple of years have been tough ones for Paulson, who told investors that gold would remain an attractive safe haven and hedge against inflation. His gold fund was down some 28% by the end of March this year.
Friday’s panic was the logical conclusion to the steady build-up of negative sentiment in the gold market to date in 2013.
Continued US equities gains, a relatively strong dollar, major ETF sell-offs, Cyprus’ plan to sell gold in return for bailout money, and the breach of the $1,500 technical support level are all part of the meltdown story.
Sources: Bloomberg; Reuters
