Alistair Hewitt

Head of Market Intelligence World Gold Council

Gold: thriving on lower interest rates

It’s old news that the world economy is suffering. Ongoing trade tensions between the US China (and elsewhere too), the draining Brexit saga, as well as a myriad of other geopolitical uncertainties, have taken their toll. Global growth is slowing, and investors are downbeat on world economic prospects. Recession in many major economies is now a real possibility... As a result, central banks around the world have been busy cutting rates.

Posted 4 years 2 months ago

Mukesh Kumar

Senior Analyst, India World Gold Council

Gold demand in India continues its downward trajectory in September

  • Indian gold imports reached just 26.3t in September 2019 – 61% lower than the same month last year.
  • The domestic gold price was 2.4% lower in September compared to August, but 18.7% higher y-t-d.
  • With weak physical demand, the discount in the local gold market reached a peak of US$55/oz in September, but narrowed to US$29.5/oz by the end of the month.
  • Monsoon levels in 2019 are the highest for 25 years; Kharif sowing almost flat y-o-y.

Posted 4 years 2 months ago

Ray Jia

Senior Analyst, China World Gold Council

Chinese gold ETFs’ AUM reached all-time high in September while physical demand remains soft

  • The Shanghai Gold Benchmark price saw a modest decline in September, with the local gold premium falling sharply due to the stabilising currency and increasing gold imports.
  • Led by the declining gold price and the soft physical demand, both Au(T+D) and Au9999’s trading volume dropped last month while loadouts from the Shanghai Gold Exchange (SGE) levelled off.
  • After hitting the lowest level since 2017 in July, gold imports to China rebounded in August.
  • The People’s Bank of China (PBoC) added another 6t to its gold reserves in September. After ten consecutive purchases, the PBoC now holds 1,948t gold in its reserves.

Posted 4 years 2 months ago

Terry Heymann

Chief Financial Officer

Takeaways from the Responsible Asset Owners Global Symposium

Last week, I was delighted to be asked to speak at the inaugural Responsible Asset Owners Global Symposium in London . More and more investors are – quite rightly – thinking about how to incorporate environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors into their investment choices. But there is still a lot of uncertainty about what this means, and in particular, what framework investors should use to assess ESG performance

Posted 4 years 3 months ago

Harry Tchilinguirian

Head of Commodity Research BNP Paribas

BNP Paribas: The outlook for gold as Fed rates fall

The US Federal Reserve has cut rates twice in recent months and the market expects more of the same, as economic conditions become increasingly uncertain in the US and across the globe. Gold has already benefited from the shift in sentiment and Harry Tchilinguirian, head of commodity research at BNP Paribas, believes it will continue to do so.

Posted 4 years 3 months ago

Ray Jia

Senior Analyst, China World Gold Council

Gold, inflation and pork in China

  • Inflation is on the rise in China, reaching 2.8% in August 2019, the highest in 18 months; leading economists expect it to rise further by the end of the year
  • African swine flu has wiped out a third of China’s pig livestock since last August, contributing substantially to the rising inflation
  • Looking back at history, when inflation rose above 3% the nominal return of the local gold price has averaged 17%

Posted 4 years 3 months ago

Mukesh Kumar

Senior Analyst, India World Gold Council

Gold rally sours Indian demand in August

  • The domestic gold price was 10.3% higher in August compared to July, outpacing the LBMA gold price which rose by 7%
  • Indian gold imports reached just 28.2t in August 2019 – 70% lower than the same month last year and lowest level since January 2018
  • With elevated domestic gold prices and a higher custom duty, the discount in the local gold market widened out as far as US$55/oz in August
  • Monsoon rainfall is 5% above Long Period Average (LPA) with Kharif sowing just 0.2% lower than last year; normal monsoon and healthy sowing bodes well for rural gold demand in Q4 2019.

Posted 4 years 3 months ago

Gerry Chen

Director, Trade Engagement World Gold Council

Takeaways from the Shenzhen Jewellery Fair 2019

I was in Shenzhen earlier this month attending various events held by major jewellers and industry bodies such as the Shenzhen Gold and Jewellery Association.

Attracting around 2,300 Chinese jewellers, the Shenzhen International Jewellery Fair 2019 is China’s leading jewellery conference and exhibition, showcasing cutting-edge innovations and exciting developments in China’s jewellery market.

Posted 4 years 3 months ago

Ray Jia

Senior Analyst, China World Gold Council

Chinese gold premium hit six-year high in August

  • In August, Shanghai Gold Benchmark (PM) rose 11% to 355 yuan/gram and the local gold premium peaked at a six-year high.
  • While Au(T+D)’s trading volume in August surged to a new all-time high, gold withdrawals from the Shanghai Gold Exchange (SGE) declined again last month.
  • Gold imports dropped to 44t in July, the lowest since 2017.
  • The People’s Bank of China (PBoC) added another 6t to its gold reserves in August.

Posted 4 years 4 months ago

Thomas Kertsos

Portfolio Manager of the First Eagle Gold Fund First Eagle Investment Management

First Eagle Investment Management on gold’s contribution to an investment portfolio

First Eagle Investment Management is an independent firm with more than US$100 billion (bn) of assets under management and a heritage dating to 1864. Committed to prudent stewardship of clients’ assets, First Eagle believes that gold and gold-mining stocks can play a unique role as a potential hedge in investment portfolios. Thomas Kertsos, co-portfolio manager of the First Eagle Gold Fund, explains why in part one of a two-part interview; part two of this interview will be published 18 September.

Posted 4 years 4 months ago

Louise Street

Senior Markets Analyst World Gold Council

Oil price jump highlights gold’s lower volatility

In our recently published report Gold: the most effective commodity investment, we looked at how gold is under-represented in the commodity indices investors often use to gain exposure. This can have unintended consequences on portfolio performance, especially when other commodities – such as oil – can have significantly different characteristics than gold.

Posted 4 years 4 months ago