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BNP Paribas
BNP Paribas expects Gold to average $1,865 an ounce for the year. Market sentiment towards Gold has been much more uncertain in 2012 than was the case in previous years. Yet, we expect Gold to achieve a new record high in 2013 due to further monetary easing, less tail risk related to a breakup of the euro zone and ongoing support from physical demand, said BNP Paribas analyst Anne-Laure Tremblay in December.
UBS
Also in December, UBS maintained its 2013 price forecast for the yellow metal, stating that Gold would average $1,900 for the year. According to analysts at UBS, The chief driver of the Gold price is partly the short term uncertainty around US fiscal policy, but also the view that monetary authorities will keep their policy loose through the rest of next year. The US Federal Reserve in its latest statement on interest rate policy has said that it will keep US rates near zero until the countrys jobless rate falls closer to its historical average from the current higher level. The Fed will also continue its policy of quantitative easing, which effectively means printing money to force down the yield curve to stimulate growth through investment in the economy. The Gold price should also benefit from similar open ended commitments by the European Central Bank, while the pending election in Japan could result in a significant policy shift at the Bank of Japan as it seeks to more aggressively stimulate the domestic economy.
Goldman Sachs
In December 2012, Goldman Sachs cut its three, six, and 12month forecasts for Gold prices to $1,825, $1,805, and $1,800 an ounce respectively. We retain a positive view on the Gold market, but given Golds outperformance during risk on intervals and our forex strategists expectation for the dollar to strengthen beyond three months, we are revising down our forecast for 2013 modestly, to $1,815/oz, the bank said.
Barclays Capital
Barclays trimmed its 2013 price forecast for Gold by 2.5% in December 2012, but said that it still expects the metal to average $1,815 an ounce for the year. We retain a positive view on the Gold market, but given Golds outperformance during risk on intervals and our forex strategists expectation for the dollar to strengthen beyond three months, we are revising down our forecast for 2013 modestly, to $1,815/oz, the bank said.
The rise of the price of Gold appears set to continue as many investors are turning to Gold commodities to add stability to their portfolios.
The euro area, which is witnessing significant fragmentation pressures, could be in danger, added Mr. Padoan.
ceiling. There is no question that the current debt level coupled with sagging corporate earning reports by U.S. companies over the last last quarter of 2012 will weigh heavily on the U.S. economy and renew Golds role as an attractive safe haven investment. The Federal Reserve recently announced that it would keep a key short-term interest rate at 0.25%, and also that it will buy $45 billion in additional treasurys every month, on top of the $40 billion of mortgage-backed securities it already purchases, taking the total size of its quantitative easing program to $85 billion a month. The Feds recent policies which lower the value of the US dollar may trigger a cycle of currency wars with the emerging world, much like what occurred with QE1 in 2008 and QE2 in 2010.
Tension has been increasing on an international scale, as many wealthy countries enact monetary easing policies which directly devalue their currency. A lower currency is good for industry on a national scale as it allows the country to be more competitive as an exporter. Over the final two months of 2012, three of the worlds largest central banks, namely the U.S. Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank and the Bank of Japan, embarked on a new round of monetary easing. This involves printing money and lowering the long-term interest rates in order to stimulate the economy. The combination of lowered interest rates and monetary easing are likely to result in increased inflation and a devaluation of the dollar, both of which put upward pressure on Gold prices.
A key reason why central banks want to hold onto Gold is the instability of their most common reserve asset, the dollar. Gold traders are paying close attention to reports from Beijing that China is attempting to boost its Gold reserves to around 4,000 tonnes to diversify away from paper currencies. Should this be true, it could lead to a significant material change for the Gold price. China is the worlds largest Gold producer, but the metal only represents 2% of the central banks total asset portfolio. As the nations economy continues to grow, they will certainly increase the amount of Gold in their portfolios. When comparing China to the U.S., it would seem that in China, gold asset allocation can only go in one direction, Chairman David Gornall told the associations annual conference in Hong Kong. The country has only 2% of its reserves in the form of gold compared with the U.S. at 75%.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) was the major seller of Gold in 2009-2010, after the executive Board approved the sale of 403.3 metric tons of Gold (12.97 million ounces), which amounted to one-eighth of the Funds total holdings of Gold at that time. However, in December 2010, the IMF concluded its limited Gold sales program. Central bank officials the world over have woken up to the fact that their predecessors acquired Gold reserves in the first place to stave off currency devaluations. And that impetus is once again taking on a heightened importance against a backdrop of continued economic and currency uncertainty, and inflation concerns. This is the conclusion of a report by the Londonbased World Gold Council. The report adds: In the official sector, we expect to see a continuing trend of central banks diversifying their dollar exposure in favor of the proven store of value represented by Gold.
There are plenty of other Gold-hungry central banks elsewhere in the world, especially in Asia, that may not wait to see if Gold drops much further before they act.
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According to Natalie Dempster, Director of Government Affairs, European central banks appetite for Gold sales has dissipated since the onset of the financial crisis. During periods of such intense economic and financial market turbulence Gold adds much needed stability to a central banks reserves. This is also evident from the
behavior of emerging market central banks over the past two years who have accumulated significant additional volumes of Gold. As a whole, central banks are now large net buyers of Gold having re-evaluated their reserve asset management policies and we expect them to remain so for the foreseeable future.
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shortage of Gold. The futures market looks about to break down, giving control of the Gold price back to the physical market where available stocks are low.
III Gold preserved value through the credit storm of 2009, and increased in value through 2012. Investors are becoming
increasingly concerned about the bubble in the bond market and Sovereign debt. In the investment cycle the next step could be a bond crash and a flight to precious metals.
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Source: www.kitco.com
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Gold mining supply Worldwide has failed to grow during the last 7 years leading to an increase in demand and prices.
Gold dealer reports an unprecedented shortage of metals
A surge for demand in Gold and silver has resulted in an unprecedented shortage of the metals for retail investors in recent days, according to Gold and Silver Investments, a Dublin-based firm that allows retail investors to speculate on movements in the value of precious metals. As the Gold and Silver supply deteriorated over the past few years, Gold and silver have now become only easily accessible in the primary market, which consists of central banks and other major traders of the precious metals. According to Gold and Silver Investments this situation is absolutely unprecedented, and that shortages are likely to drive up the costs of Gold and silver in the secondary market: This did not happen even in the 1930s and the 1970s, and will result in markedly higher prices.
considerations. If the investor expects or fears rising inflation, destabilizing deflation, a bear market in stocks or bonds, or financial turmoil, Gold should do well and exposure is warranted.
II Understanding the internal dynamics of the Gold market
can be helpful regarding investment timing issues. For example, the weekly position reports of commodity trading funds or sentiment indicators offer useful clues as to entry or exit points for active trading strategies. Reports on physical demand for jewelry, industrial, and other uses compiled by various sources also provide some perspective. However, none of these considerations, non monetary in nature, yield any insight as to the broad market trend. The same can be said for reports of central bank selling and lending activity. Central banks are bureaucratic institutions and in their judgments they are essentially market trend followers.
III A reasonable allocation in a conservative, diversified
than direct ownership of the metal itself. Gold equities tend to appear expensive in comparison to those of conventional companies because they contain an imbedded option component for a possible rise in the Gold price. The share price sensitivity to a hypothetical rise in metal price is related to the cash flow from current production as well as the valuation impact on proven and probable reserves.
IV Bullion or coins are a more conservative way to invest in
portfolio is 0 to 3% during a Gold bear market and 5% to10% during a bull market.
Gold than through Gold mining shares. In addition, there is greater liquidity for large pools of capital. Investing in the physical metal requires scrutinizing the custodial arrangements and the creditworthiness of the financial institution. It is also advisable not to mistake the promise of a financial institution to settle based on the Gold price, for example by a Gold Certificate or a Structured Note (i.e. a derivative). Instead, be adamant on actual physical possession of the metal. Insist on possession in a segregated vault, subject to unscheduled audits, and inaccessible to the trading arrangements or financial interest of the financial institution.
Diversification
Gold is a unique asset class and was possibly the first asset class to exist. Gold has been a store of wealth, a currency and a commodity for thousands of years. Furthermore, there is a growing body of research, which supports the notion that Gold is treated by investors as a unique asset class and fluctuates independent of both other asset classes and some macroeconomic indicators such as GDP and inflation. A number of studies overseas and one recent study by PriceWaterhouseCoopers in Australia have all found that Gold is insignificantly or negatively correlated with the major portfolio asset classes.
International research
The body of research studying the statistical benefits of holding Gold bullion in a portfolio is slowly growing. Roy Jastram wrote the cornerstone piece of this research in 1977: The Golden ConstantThe English and American Experience 1560-1976. Jastrams book investigated the price and purchasing power of Gold over time and during different periods such as inflationary and deflationary times. He concluded that Gold bullion has held its purchasing power parity with other commodities and intermediate products over the very long term. In this study, the use of commodities as a basis of comparison enabled construction of a long-dated index which represented a CPIstyle index (CPI did not exist 400 years ago). In 1998, Harmston (another financial historian) updated Jastrams research, while also looking at the relationship between Gold bullion and other asset classes. Harmstons study covered the US (from 1796), Britain (from 1596), France (from 1820), Germany (from 1873) and Japan (from 1880). Harmston ran a series of regressions and showed that there was a positive relationship between the annual movements in bonds and T-bills with the annual movements in the Dow Jones Industrial Average Index (DJI) for the period 1968 to 1996. Over the same period, Harmston found that Gold bullion had a negative relationship with the DJI.
money. The more money the bank lends out, or the higher the credit risk of the person/institution to whom the bank has lent the money, then the more risk you have taken on by depositing cash at the bank. The only control you have over this risk is by not keeping your cash on deposit with the bank. This is similar to unallocated Gold: it is lent out to a 3rd party, often to a multiple of what is actually on deposit, and it earns a rate of return which is called the lease rate. By comparison, allocated Gold is not lent out, does not carry any credit risk on the bank or a 3rd party, and therefore does not earn any income. Indeed, allocated Gold may bear a holding charge to cover the costs of storage and insurance.
In contrast, cash is not always accepted. A central bank can withdraw a note at any time, Gold however, is accepted anywhere in the world. It can be a currency without borders. Cash has borders and this is most pronounced when the government is unstable, the currency is not liquid or the government is printing too much money.
Gold is more than an investment. It is a diversification and risk management tool essential for a balanced portfolio.
Gold has been used as money for a thousend years. Even today, it remains the ultimate currency.
stocks could be negatively affected in such times as stock markets may be closed or adversely affected for a time.
III Physical Gold can be used for barter or purchasing life sustaining items during crisis times. Mining shares would be harder to
Huge Leverage
The increase in the mineral prices not only focuses more attention on the sector, but also causes even more money to be spent on exploration thereby increasing the probability of finding new deposits. It also increases the value of any potential discovery through leverage. Mineral deposits are gauged, in financial terms, by the ``Net Present Value of Future Cash Flows`` formula should the deposit be mined. Say for example we find a million ounce deposit of Gold and an engineering study suggests it could be mined over ten years at a cost of $250 an ounce, including capital. For the purposes of the example lets assume Gold is at the unrealistically low level of $350 an ounce. Lets also assume a 10% discount rate (over 10 years) and we find that the deposit would be worth roughly $70 million. However if the Gold price were to increase to $400 an ounce (a 15% increase) the value of the same Gold (with the same parameters) increases to $100 million (almost 50%). That is over 300% leverage to the Gold price. Increases, obviously, have an increment benefit.
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Invest Demand
Many experts believe that, when the retail investing public recognizes what is unfolding, they will seek an alternative to paper currencies and financial assets and this will create an enormous investment demand for Gold. Under such circumstances, it may be prudent to own both the physical metal and select mining shares.
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Existence of a Huge and Growing Gap between Mine Supply and Traditional Demand
Gold mined is roughly 2500 tons per annum, and traditional demand (jewelry, industrial users, etc.) has continued to exceed this by a considerable margin for a number of years. Some of this shortfall has been filled by Gold recycling, but selling from various Central Banks has been a primary source of above-ground supply.
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Rising Gold Prices and Low Interest Rates Discourage Financial Speculation on the Short Side.
When Gold prices were continuously falling and financial speculators could access Central Bank Gold at a minimal leasing rate (0.5 1% per annum), sell it and reinvest the proceeds in a high yielding bond or Treasury bill, the trade was viewed as a lay-up. Everyone did it and now there are numerous stale short positions, which must be filled with actual purchases. However, these types of trades now no longer make sense with a rising Gold price and declining interest rates.
In the mining World, the majority of Gold deposits are found by junior mining companies. They provide better leverage and potential for long term investors.
Investors interested in Gold may also want to consider investments in Gold producing companies.
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Invest Demand
Many experts believe that, when the retail investing public recognizes what is unfolding, they will seek an alternative to paper currencies and financial assets and this will create an enormous investment demand for Gold. Under such circumstances, it may be prudent to own both the physical metal and select mining shares.
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The Central Banks are nearing an Inflection Point when they will be Reluctant to Provide more Gold to the Market.
Far Eastern Central Banks who are accumulating enormous quantities of US Dollars are rumored to be buyers of Gold to diversify away from the US Dollar.
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CONCLUSION
Gold is under-valued, under-owned and under-appreciated as an investment tool. It is most assuredly not well understood by most investors. At the beginning of the 1970s when Gold was about to undertake its historic move from $35 per oz to $800 per oz in the succeeding ten years, the same observations would have been valid. The only difference this time is that the fundamentals for Gold appear to be better.
DISCLAIMER: All information contained in the report is obtained from public sources. No compensation of any kind is taken from any companies that are mentioned in this report. The sources used are believed to be reliable but the accuracy of this information is not guaranteed. Readers are advised that the report is issued solely for informational purposes and is not to be construed as an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy anything. The opinions and analyses included herein are based from sources believed to be reliable and written in good faith, but no representation or warranty, expressed or implied is made as to their accuracy, completeness or correctness. Any information upon which a reader intends to rely in assessing future economic decisions should be independently verified.