"The WHOLESALE MARKET gold price reached new 5-week highs as Asian trade ended and London opened on Tuesday, while global stock markets and commodity prices also rose after stronger-than-expected growth data from China.
The world's second-largest economy, China reported annual growth of 8.9% for the end of 2011 – the weakest level since mid-2009 but stronger than analysts forecast and almost 5 times the pace of US growth at last count.
The Shanghai Composite stock index jumped 4.2%. Copper led base metal prices by rising 2.6%.
Silver bullion re-touched last week's 2-month high above $30.50 per ounce, despite news of a sharp hike in Indian import duty which also affects gold.
The gold price peaked on Tuesday mornng at $1667 per ounce, more than 9.4% above the 5-month low touched in late December.
US crude oil contracts jumped back to $100 per barrel after Saudi oil minister Ali al-Naimi said the Opec-cartel member is now targeting that level – "a new line in the sand" substantially above the previous "fair price" of $75 according to Standard Bank today.
"Gold price action is becoming increasingly indifferent to physical trade and far more susceptible to broader market headwinds," says a note from Japanese conglomerate Mitsui's London team today.
"Everything is rising because of China," says one commodities analyst in Frankfurt to Bloomberg. "It's general market sentiment."
"Simply put," reckons China economist Ting Lu at Bank of America/Merrill Lynch in Hong Kong, "Beijing will continue its policy easing which was started in mid-October, though we should not expect a big-bang stimulus."
at http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/Article32673.html
The world's second-largest economy, China reported annual growth of 8.9% for the end of 2011 – the weakest level since mid-2009 but stronger than analysts forecast and almost 5 times the pace of US growth at last count.
The Shanghai Composite stock index jumped 4.2%. Copper led base metal prices by rising 2.6%.
Silver bullion re-touched last week's 2-month high above $30.50 per ounce, despite news of a sharp hike in Indian import duty which also affects gold.
The gold price peaked on Tuesday mornng at $1667 per ounce, more than 9.4% above the 5-month low touched in late December.
US crude oil contracts jumped back to $100 per barrel after Saudi oil minister Ali al-Naimi said the Opec-cartel member is now targeting that level – "a new line in the sand" substantially above the previous "fair price" of $75 according to Standard Bank today.
"Gold price action is becoming increasingly indifferent to physical trade and far more susceptible to broader market headwinds," says a note from Japanese conglomerate Mitsui's London team today.
"Everything is rising because of China," says one commodities analyst in Frankfurt to Bloomberg. "It's general market sentiment."
"Simply put," reckons China economist Ting Lu at Bank of America/Merrill Lynch in Hong Kong, "Beijing will continue its policy easing which was started in mid-October, though we should not expect a big-bang stimulus."
at http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/Article32673.html
