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☆ China has a 'fake gold' problem — locals are getting scammed into buying artificial jewelry
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-03 | by ( Lee Ying Shan | In Ying-Shan-Lee | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Gold bracelets at a gold jewelry store in the Zhejiang Province of China. Thousands of people in China have been duped into forking out money on "fake gold" — inferior or artificial gold — after trying to purchase so-called "999 gold" online, according to the government. The purest form of gold is commonly referred to as 999 gold, because it has gold content of 99.9%. "Fake gold is becoming a major problem in China as more Chinese are looking to put their savings into gold," said China Market Research Group's Managing Director Shaun Rein. Fake gold gets darker or reveals a greenish color when placed under flame, while pure gold turns brighter on exposure to heat.

Persons: Shaun Rein, Nikos Kavalis, Rein, Taobao, Pinduoduo Organizations: Visual China, Getty, Research, India, World Gold, Metals, ChinaFotoPress Locations: Zhejiang Province, China, scammers, Nantong

☆ Low Platinum Prices Show How Banking on Miners Could Threaten the Energy Transition
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-15 | by ( Yusuf Khan | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +5 min

Platinum is used to make the electrolyzers that produce hydrogen and the sharp down cycle in South Africa’s platinum mining sector demonstrates the risk that low prices and lack of investment could slow the energy transition. Prices for other commodities have also fallen, while miners have been complaining of rising costs and seem to be limiting their capital expenditures. Photo: michele spatari/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesFor the mining sector, cyclical returns are nothing new. Ray said many South African PGM miners are now selling their output at close to the cost of production, eating away at profitability. “To the extent that PGM prices stay at current levels, I would not be surprised to see more supply-side reaction,” Ray said.

Persons: Waldo Swiegers, ”, Tom Price, michele spatari, We’ve, ” Emma Townshend, ” Townshend, Raj Ray, Ray, ” Ray, ” Implats’s Townshend, Implats, Yusuf Khan Organizations: Bloomberg, Liberum, Agence France, PGM, Times, Business, BMO Capital Markets, Metals Locations: Sibanye, Africa, Johannesburg, Stillwater, South, South Africa, Marikana, U.S, China, Europe, Implats

Down 45% so far this year, palladium is on course for its worst year of losses since 2008, when the financial crash hit demand. Top producer Russia's Nornickel expects the palladium market to swing to a surplus of 300,000 ounces in 2024 from a 200,000-ounce deficit in 2023 due to supplies, boosted by recycling, outpacing demand. Consultancy Metals Focus forecasts above-ground palladium stocks of about 11.64 million ounces in 2023, compared with 12.35 million in 2022 and 12.89 million in 2021 - meaning ample supplies. In March 2022, palladium was trading at more than double the price of platinum, prompting a switch by automakers. However, longer-term Metals Focus is quite bearish on palladium," said Nikos Kavalis, managing director at Metals Focus.

Persons: Alexander Manzyuk, hastening, Russia's Nornickel, John Meyer, Edward Meir, Nikos Kavalis, Brijesh Patel, Harshit Verma, Ashitha, Anjana Anil, Anushree Mukherjee, Abhijith, Arpan Varghese, Pratima Desai, Hugh Lawson Organizations: REUTERS, Russia, ICE, International Energy, Consultancy, Metals, Thomson Locations: Siberian, Krasnoyarsk, Russia, Ukraine, Bengaluru

☆ AI boom could feed precious metals' demand - Metals Focus
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Ingots of 99.99 percent pure silver are placed in a workroom at the Novosibirsk precious metals refining and manufacturing plant in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, Russia, September 15, 2023. REUTERS/Alexander Manzyuk/File photo Acquire Licensing RightsOct 25 (Reuters) - The artificial intelligence (AI) boom could support industrial demand for precious metals next year, although high interest rates and economic concerns may be near-term headwinds, Metals Focus said on Wednesday. Since most components used in conjunction with AI devices are sophisticated, "we expect to see widespread support for a range of precious metals bearing components," Metals Focus said in a note to investors. To cope with the evolution of AI algorithms, shipping growth for AI servers and switches will rise by double digits over the next few years and stimulate precious metals demand, Metals Focus said. Spot gold prices have climbed about 9% in the past two weeks, mainly fueled by safe-haven inflows triggered by the Israel-Hamas conflict, providing a tailwind for other precious metals as well.

Persons: Alexander Manzyuk, ChatGPT, Ashitha Shivaprasad, Arpan Varghese, Richard Chang Organizations: REUTERS, Metals, Nvidia, Thomson Locations: Novosibirsk, Siberian, Russia, Israel, Bengaluru

☆ Gold extends gains as Treasury yields rally comes to a halt
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-23 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

At the precious metals dealer Pro Aurum, two gold and two silver bars are placed in a locker in a vault. Spot gold firmed 0.3% to $1,902.63 per ounce by 0519 GMT, drifting further away from the five-month lows hit last week. The dollar index was below the two-month highs, while a rally that took U.S. Treasury yields to nearly 16-year highs took a pause, giving some respite to the non-yielding gold. "If he does hint about a higher target, that could mean interest rates may not need to move any higher from here." Recent robust U.S. economic data has raised bets the Fed will keep rates higher for longer, reducing appetite for gold as reflected in holdings of bullion-backed exchange traded funds, or ETF.

Persons: Jackson, Jerome Powell's, Harshal Barot, Thomas Barkin Organizations: Pro Aurum, Treasury, Federal, Metals, Richmond Fed, Trust Locations: U.S, Wyoming

☆ Robust equities erode gold's safe-haven allure as ETF holdings fall
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-21 | by ( Deep Kaushik Vakil | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

(Reuters) -Receding fears of a U.S. slowdown, surging bond yields and the robust performance of equities have gradually eroded the appeal of exchange-traded funds (ETF) backed by traditional safe-haven gold this year, despite sticky inflation. The biggest ETF, SPDR Gold Trust, saw holdings dwindle to pre-pandemic levels. [GOL/ETF]Investors typically buy gold during times of financial and economic uncertainty and rising inflation. [GOL/]“Gold has fallen into disfavour as a hedge against economic uncertainty for many institutional investors,” said Ross Norman, chief executive of Metals Daily. Equities have outperformed gold despite higher interest rates, while rival safe-haven Treasury bonds have attracted investors away from gold, which doesn’t earn any interest or dividends.

Persons: Ilya Naymushin, ”, Ross Norman, Carsten Menke, Julius Baer, Gold, Philip Newman, Newman, hasn’t Organizations: Reuters, REUTERS, World Gold Council, Investors, U.S, Metals Daily, U.S . Federal, Treasury, Metals Locations: U.S, Siberian, Krasnoyarsk, Russia, disfavour, “

☆ Gold rises on softer dollar, yields ahead of U.S. inflation data
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Gold prices rose on Wednesday after the dollar and bond yields retreated as investors awaited U.S. inflation data that could offer more cues on the Federal Reserve's rate-hike policy path. Spot gold rose 0.4% to $1,939.43 per ounce by 0518 GMT, its highest since June 20. U.S. gold futures rose 0.4% to $1,944.90. Economists polled by Reuters expect June core inflation rate to have dropped to 5% from 5.3%, still significantly above the Fed's 2% target. In the wider base metals market, prices rose, supported by a weaker dollar, although a gloomy demand outlook loomed over the market.

Persons: Jun Rong, Barot Organizations: Pro Aurum, Treasury, CPI, IG, Reuters, Metals Focus, greenback

SummaryCompanies Dollar down 0.3%, at lowest since May 11Inflation data expected at 1230 GMTJuly 12 (Reuters) - Gold prices rose on Wednesday after the dollar and bond yields retreated as investors awaited U.S. inflation data that could offer more cues on the Federal Reserve's rate-hike policy path. Making gold cheaper for holders of other currencies, the dollar index (.DXY) fell 0.3% to its lowest level since May 11. "There has been some renewed confidence in gold prices lately, given the broad expectations for the upcoming U.S. CPI to reflect further moderation in pricing pressures," said Yeap Jun Rong, market strategist at IG. Economists polled by Reuters expect June core inflation rate to have dropped to 5% from 5.3%, still significantly above the Fed's 2% target. In the wider base metals market, prices rose, supported by a weaker dollar, although a gloomy demand outlook loomed over the market.

Persons: Jun Rong, Barot, Seher, Sherry Jacob, Phillips, Sohini Organizations: Treasury, CPI, IG, Reuters, Metals, Thomson Locations: Bengaluru

SP Angel analyst John Meyer said that with global EV sales expected to reach around 15 million vehicles this year, sales of palladium, chiefly used to neutralise harmful car emissions, could be impaired by 1.5 million-2.25 million ounces. While there are still few battery-powered vehicles in the heavy-duty market, exhaust-free electric vehicles are eating into the palladium-focused light vehicle market, Johnson Matthey said. Palladium prices could fall to the $1,250 level, Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA, said. "The reason why people are more pessimistic about palladium than platinum is due to adoption of EVs," he said. "There's a lack of interest in the palladium market.

Persons: John Meyer, Johnson, Wilma Swarts, PGMs, Johnson Matthey, Edward Moya, palladium's bearishness, Tai Wong, Bart Melek, Ashitha, Seher Dareen, Arundhati Sarkar, Brijesh Patel, Arpan Varghese, Jan Harvey Organizations: Palladium, SP, Metals, TD Securities, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, New York, China, Bengaluru

☆ Electric vehicles throw Palladium's mega-rally into reverse
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Peter Hobson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

(Graphic: Palladium's rally, )Powering the rally was rising demand from automakers who needed more palladium per vehicle to meet tightening emissions standards. Electric vehicles (EVs) that do not need palladium are gaining market share and automakers are substituting some palladium for cheaper platinum in combustion engine vehicles. (Graphic: Palladium supply from recycled vehicles, )That will shift the roughly 11 million ounce a year market to a surplus of nearly a million ounces in 2027, they said. (Graphic: Palladium market balance, )But it is too early to rule out short-term upward moves. (Graphic: Palladium speculators, )

☆ Platinum deficit expected in 2023 after bumper surpluses, WPIC says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Nov 22 (Reuters) - The World Platinum Investment Council (WPIC) said on Tuesday it expected a deficit of the metal used in vehicle exhausts, industry and jewellery in 2023 after a hefty surplus this year. The World Platinum Investment Council expects the market to swing into deficit in 2023. Manufacturers are also replacing palladium with cheaper platinum to save money, with such substitution accounting for 340,000 ounces of platinum demand this year and just over 500,000 ounces in 2023, the WPIC said. "This could lead to an even further tightening of the platinum market next year," he said. ANNUAL PLATINUM SUPPLY/DEMAND ('000 oz)*QUARTERLY PLATINUM SUPPLY/DEMAND ('000 oz)** Source: World Platinum Investment Council, Platinum Quarterly Q3 2022Reporting by Peter Hobson.

☆ Silver heads for biggest deficit in decades, Silver Institute says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Clark Mindock | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Nov 18 (Reuters) - Global demand for silver is expected to rise 16% this year to 1.21 billion ounces, creating the biggest deficit in decades, according to the Silver Institute on Thursday night. The Silver Institute predicted a deficit of 194 million ounces this year, up from 48 million ounces in 2021. The Silver Institute predicts a 16% increase in demand this year to 1.21 billion ounces. Silver prices have fallen around 10% this year to $21 an ounce, mostly due to financial investors selling silver in response to rising U.S. bond yields and a strengthening dollar. SILVER DEMAND (MILLIONS OF OUNCES)*Source: The Silver Institute, Metals FocusReporting by Peter Hobson; Editing by Lisa ShumakerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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