Hong Kong Stocks Slip 0.20%, Shanghai Rallies

PT. Equityworld Futures - Hong Kong stocks eased 0.20 percent Tuesday, giving up early gains following a three-day rally, but Shanghai extended a recent rally on hopes China will unveil fresh economy-boosting measures.
The benchmark Hang Seng Index dipped 48.06 points to 23,901.49 on turnover of HK$80.09 billion ($10.33 billion).
In mainland China, the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index jumped 1.55 percent, or 53.54 points, to 3,502.85 -- its highest close since May 2008 -- on turnover of 601.5 billion yuan ($97.7 billion).
The Shenzhen Composite Index, which tracks stocks on China's second exchange, gained 1.23 percent, or 21.59 points, to 1,781.78 on turnover of 497.5 billion yuan.
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Gold Near Three-Month Low as Investors Await Fed Meeting

PT. Equityworld Futures - Gold futures were little changed, trading near a three-month low as investors awaited the conclusion of a Federal Reserve policy meeting.

Key to the debate for Fed officials meeting this week will be whether the U.S. economy has gained enough steam to warrant removing a pledge to be “patient” on raising borrowing costs. Money managers have cut their gold net-long wagers for six straight weeks amid mounting speculation U.S. interest rates will rise.

Gold futures for April delivery climbed 0.1 percent to settle at $1,153.20 an ounce at 1:37 p.m. on the Comex in New York. Prices touched $1,146.50 on March 11, the lowest since Dec. 1. The metal has posted two straight weekly declines.

The Fed policy statement is due at 2 p.m. on March 18 in Washington. Gains in the labor market are increasing the chances the central bank will raise rates, eroding the haven appeal of gold and sending investors to assets with better yield prospects such as bonds and equities.

Silver futures for May delivery gained 0.8 percent to $15.617 an ounce on the Comex, the second increase in three sessions.

Platinum futures for April delivery slid 0.7 percent to $1,107.90 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The price touched $1,105, the lowest since July 2009. Palladium futures for June delivery dropped 1.1 percent to $780.10 an ounce.
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Gold Futures Decline to 18-Week Low as Investors Sell ETP Assets

PT. Equityworld Futures - Gold futures slumped to an 18-week low as investors exited funds backed by the metal before a Federal Reserve policy meeting.
Holdings in gold exchange-traded products fell for a 14th straight day Monday, the longest run in more than a year. Almost 90 percent of economists surveyed by Bloomberg predict Fed officials will drop a pledge to be “patient” on raising interest rates from a policy statement due at the conclusion of their gathering Wednesday.
The precious metal has fallen 3 percent in 2015 on concern rates will rise, sending investors to assets with better yield prospects such as bonds and equities. Money managers have cut their gold net-long wagers for six straight weeks, and ETP assets are at the lowest since Jan. 21.
Gold futures for April delivery fell 0.4 percent to settle at $1,148.20 an ounce at 1:43 p.m. on the Comex in New York. The price touched $1,141.60, the lowest since Nov. 7, when the metal reached a four-year low of $1,130.40.
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Gold Holds Near Three-Month Low as Investors Weigh Rate Outlook

PT. Equityworld Futures - Gold held near the lowest in three months as the dollar extended gains on speculation the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates this year as the economy recovers.
Bullion for immediate delivery traded at $1,168.53 an ounce by 9:43 a.m. in Singapore from $1,167.21 on Monday, according to Bloomberg generic pricing. Gold fell to $1,163.84 on Friday, the lowest since Dec. 1, after a report showed the U.S. jobless rate fell to the lowest in almost seven years.
Investors are weighing data for clues on when the central bank may raise rates from near zero. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index is at the highest in a decade after the U.S. jobs report saw traders bolster bets on a September rate rise. Fed Bank of Dallas President Richard Fisher warned that delaying higher borrowing costs risked recession. Higher rates curb gold’s appeal as it generally gives returns only through price gains.
Gold for April delivery traded at $1,167.50 an ounce on the Comex in New York from $1,166.50 on Monday.
Silver for immediate delivery rose 0.2 percent to $15.8054 an ounce, after falling to $15.7222, the lowest since Jan. 5.
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ANZ: Gold could reach $US1100 in the next three months

PT. Equityworld Futures - The plunge in the gold price following strong US jobs data could be repeated over coming months, according to commodities analysts.
Gold fell 2.6 per cent from $US1200 an ounce on Friday after the release of US non-farm payrolls data on Friday night, and was hovering around $US1170 on Monday.
The data showed the United States added 295,000 jobs in February “ 55,000 more than economists were expecting. Furthermore, US unemployment dropped 0.2 of a percentage point to 5.5 per cent “ the lowest since May 2008.
"The non-farm payroll data has been a strong driver of the gold price over the last 18 months," said UBS commodities analyst Jo Battershill.
"Something that was never a big driver of gold has now become a very big driver of gold."
In addition, gold had breached an important technical level on Friday night's plunge, which had triggered further selling, he said.
"$US1185 over the past couple of years has been seen as a major sort of support level. There was a lot of influence around that level so that in a lot of markets there would have been a lot of triggers on that value. I would imagine a significant amount of value would have gone through once it breached that level."
Mr Battershill said the end of February through to July was traditionally a soft period for gold, which could see the price fall further.
"What's holding it up at the moment is that we're still seeing very, very strong physical demand out of China. The next four months will be a battle between [US interest rate rises] in the West and physical demand in the East.
"In the short term, you'd pick the interest rates on that."
However, in the longer term Mr Battershill predicted Asian demand would put a solid floor under the gold price.
"Every time we see gold touch new lows in this cycle you see strong physical demand out of China and India. Will there be a cultural shift away from gold as a store of wealth in the East? I don't think so."
Gold is now 38 per cent off its September 2011 high of $US1900, although higher than its November 2014 low of $US1144.
ANZ commodities analyst Daniel Hynes said gold could reach $US1100 in the next three months.
"It's come at a time when physical demand has been weak as well," he said. "The headwinds for gold have been quite strong over the past few weeks and that payrolls number was the straw that broke the camel's back.
"Our outlook for gold is fairly bearish at the moment . We'd be looking for prices to pressure the $US1100 level.
"Certainly in the very short term everything's going against it ... In the next few weeks or so there's going to be some serious headwinds which will put downward pressure on gold prices."
US interest rates and the US dollar were both rising, as were equity markets, he said.
"All that safe-haven buying support we saw at the start of the year has completely evaporated and is unlikely to return in the short term."
But Mr Hynes said the long-term view for gold was better, with ANZ forecasting $US1280 an ounce for the end of 2015.
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U.S. Stocks Drop as Feb Payrolls Report Fuels Rate Speculation

PT. Equityworld Futures - U.S. stocks fell, with benchmark indexes tumbling the most in two months, as better-than-forecast jobs data fueled speculation the Federal Reserve is moving closer to raising interest rates.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index fell 1.4 percent, the most since Jan. 5, to 2,071.26 at 4 p.m. in New York. The equity gauge lost 1.8 percent for the week.

Employers added more jobs than forecast in February and the unemployment rate dropped to 5.5 percent, the lowest in almost seven years, showing the labor market is sustaining progress after the best annual performance in 15 years.

The 295,000 advance in payrolls last month followed a 239,000 January increase that was smaller than previously reported, figures from the Labor Department showed Friday in Washington. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for a 235,000 increase. The unemployment rate fell from 5.7 percent while hourly earnings rose less than forecast.

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Gold Erases 2015’s Advance on Concern U.S. Rates Will Rise Soon

PT. Equityworld Futures - The more the U.S. economy improves, the worse things get for gold bulls.

Bullion erased its 2015 gains and slumped the most in more than a year Friday after a government report showed American employers added more jobs than forecast in February. The unemployment rate dropped to the lowest in almost seven years. Holdings in exchange-traded funds backed by gold headed for the biggest weekly decline since November.

A stronger economy is fueling speculation that the Federal Reserve is getting closer to raising interest rates for the first time since 2006, damping the appeal of the metal, which generally offer returns through price gains. Futures fell 5.2 percent last month amid gains in U.S. equities and easing concern over Greece’s debt.

On the Comex, gold futures for April delivery fell 2.7 percent to settle at $1,164.30 an ounce at 1:41 p.m. in New York, the biggest drop since Dec. 19, 2013. Earlier, the metal slumped to $1,162.90, the lowest since Dec. 1.

Gold dropped 29 percent in the previous two years as the dollar surged and inflation remained low. Prices climbed 70 percent from December 2008 to June 2011 partly as the Fed held interest rates near a record low.

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Chinese Stocks Cap Monthly Gain Before Annual Congress Meeting

PT. Equityworld Futures - Chinese stocks rose, with the benchmark index capping a monthly gain, before the start of the annual National People’s Congress meeting next week. The yuan weakened.
The Shanghai Composite Index added 0.4 percent to 3,310.30 at the close. The gauge rose 3.3 percent during the holiday-shortened month. The measure jumped 2.2 percent yesterday after Premier Li Keqiang called for more active fiscal policy and a central bank publication said extra monetary easing is needed.
China should loosen monetary policy to reduce the impact of the economic slowdown on jobs, according to a commentary in China Securities Journal, while an article in the People’s Bank of China’s newspaper published yesterday said the central bank should cut required reserve ratios for lenders. The country’s export outlook in 2015 is still “grim,” Commerce Minister Gao Hucheng said Thursday.
The CSI 300 Index gained 0.2 percent, while the Hang Seng Index was little changed at 3:13 p.m. local time and the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index dropped 0.2 percent.
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Gold Drops to Seven-Week Low on Greek Accord as Platinum Falls

PT. Equityworld Futures - Gold futures fell to a seven-week low after Greece reached a provisional accord on a bailout with euro-area finance ministers, reducing demand for the metal as a haven. Platinum dropped to the cheapest in five years.
Gold has dropped below $1,200 an ounce after last month topping $1,300, partly on speculation that Greece would reach a debt agreement. The metal fell as the dollar gained amid bets the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates this year. Fed Chair Janet Yellen is scheduled to speak Tuesday in the Senate and the following day in the House.
On the Comex in New York, gold futures for April delivery fell 0.3 percent to settle at $1,200.80 at 1:40 p.m. Earlier, the price touched $1,190.60, the lowest for a most-active contract since Jan. 5.
Aggregate trading was 30 percent below the average for the past 100 days for this time, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

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European Stocks Advance as Euro-Area Ministers Discuss Greece

PT. Equityworld Futures - European stocks extended a seven-year high as Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis faced his euro-area counterparts in Brussels to seek an agreement that will let Europe™s most-indebted country avoid default.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose 0.2 percent to 382.27 at the close of trading, for a 1.4 percent weekly gain. The gauge is up for a third week, its longest streak since the beginning of December. The ASE Index lost 0.3 percent, erasing an earlier rise, after Maltese Finance Minister Edward Scicluna said Germany and its allies are ready to let Greece leave the euro unless Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras accepts the conditions required to extend his country™s financial support.
The Stoxx 600 has surged 12 percent this year, even as volatility has increased after Greece elected a new government that is now renegotiating the terms of its aid package. The VStoxx Index, which tracks expectations for equity swings, has had a daily average of about 25.4 in 2015. That™s 40 percent greater than in 2014.
An agreement on extending Greece™s bailout program, which expires at the end of February, appears unlikely, leading to more talks on Sunday or Monday, a European Union official said. A preliminary round was œvery difficult, Dutch Finance Minister Jeroen Dijsselbloem, who heads the Eurogroup, told reporters
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Gold Trims Fourth Weekly Decline on Greece & U.S. Rate Outlook

PT. Equityworld Futures - Gold advanced to pare the longest run of weekly losses in 17 months as investors weighed the outlook for an agreement on Greece™s funding and the timing of a U.S. rate increase amid signs of economic growth.
Bullion for immediate delivery added as much as 0.3 percent to $1,209.84 an ounce and traded at $1,206.49 by 12:10 p.m. in Singapore, according to Bloomberg generic pricing. Prices are down 1.9 percent this week and a fourth straight decline would be the longest run since September 2013.

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Gold Drops Below $1,200 as Optimism on Greece Cuts Haven Demand

PT. Equityworld Futures - Gold futures fell below $1,200 an ounce as Greece and European finance ministers reached an accord on a bailout extension, eroding demand for the precious metal as a haven.
The metal posted the fourth straight weekly decline, the longest slump since early October. On Wednesday, the price touched 1,197.20, the lowest since Jan. 5, partly on signs of declining demand in China. Earlier Friday, gold climbed as much as 0.6 percent after Malta™s finance chief said a German-led bloc is willing to let Greece leave the euro.
Gold futures for April delivery dropped 0.2 percent to settle at $1,204.90 at 1:49 p.m. on the Comex in New York. After the close, the price touched $1,197.70.
This year, the metal has climbed 1.8 percent as Greek turmoil spurred currency volatility. Tension in the region also signaled sluggish economic growth, boosting the appeal of gold as a store of value.

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Gold turns up as Fed minutes show patience on rate hike

PT. Equityworld Futures - Gold rose on Wednesday, rebounding above a six-week low after minutes from the Federal Reserve's latest meeting showed policymakers were concerned about raising interest rates too soon.

Minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee's January meeting expressed concern that raising interest rates too soon could pour cold water on the U.S. economic recovery. Policy makers also fretted over the impact of dropping "patient" from the central bank's interest rate guidance.

Spot gold rose 0.1 percent to $1,209.56 an ounce at 3:07 p.m. EST (2007 GMT), after earlier falling to a six-week low at $1,197.56. U.S. gold futures for April delivery settled down $8.40, or 0.7 percent, at $1,200.20 an ounce.

Platinum prices also rose after sliding to their lowest in 5-1/2 years.

Gold has come under pressure from expectations the Fed will raise interest rates as early as June, potentially lifting the dollar and boosting the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding assets like bullion.

Earlier, gold prices had extended the prior day's steep losses as hopes for a resolution to Greece's debt talks sent European stocks to a seven-year high. Prices found technical support at the 61.8 percent Fibonacci retracement level from the January high to the November low.

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Gold Futures Tumble to Six-Week Low on Signs China’s Demand Ebbs

PT. Equityworld Futures - Gold futures fell to a six-week low approaching $1,200 an ounce on speculation that Chinese demand will fall during the Lunar New Year holiday. Silver tumbled, and platinum dropped to the cheapest in more than five years.
Volume in the Shanghai Gold Exchange™s benchmark spot contract dropped to the lowest in a year. Markets in China, the world™s second-biggest buyer, will be closed for five sessions starting Wednesday. Investors assessed the risks from a breakdown in talks between Greece and its creditors as U.S. equities traded close to a record high.
Gold futures for April delivery fell 1.5 percent to settle at $1,208.60 at 1:54 p.m. on the Comex in New York. Earlier, the price touched $1,203.30, the lowest for a most-active contract since Jan. 6. Floor trading was closed on Monday for the U.S. Presidents™ Day holiday.

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Greek PM Meet EU Leaders About Bailout

PT. Equityworld Futures - New Greek Prime Minister leftist Alexis Tsipras direct confrontation with the head of the European Union on Thursday (12/2) in respect loosen the austerity measures which they wore against Greece as a condition of massive bailouts.
EU leaders meet in Brussels where for the first time, a meeting between the leaders of Greece, aged 40 years, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, leader of efforts to save it. German leaders and the heads of other countries are not interested in cutting Greece's debt or renegotiate a loan of $ 300 billion.
When he arrived at the EU summit, Tsipras said, "I want to tell Europe stands at a crucial point for the future. We need to find a solution that respects the positions of all parties, so that the agreement must be based on the core European values, democracy and the voice of the people , but also to respect the interests of European rules. "
Earlier, the talks between Greece and its creditors Europe ended Wednesday without a compromise on a massive bailouts and austerity measures imposed on Athens. Both parties even failed to agree on a joint statement after a 7 hour emergency talks between Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis and euro zone finance ministers in Brussels.
Jeroen Dijsselbloem, chairman of euro zone finance ministers, said not enough progress was made even though only about what to talk about when the two sides meet again on Monday.
"We did not really discuss the details of the proposal, we do not negotiate about the content of the program or programs, we are just trying to take the next steps in the next few days. And that we did not manage to do so," said Dijsselbloem.
Instead, Greece wants the lenders - all 18 countries of the European Union, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund - to provide temporary loan in a few months. Greece says it takes time to menegosiakan changes to program the required savings to the state; where wages and pensions cut, tax increases and thousands of civil servants laid off.
Greece's new left-wing government, elected last month, asking to renegotiate loan amounting to $ 300 billion instead of trying to extend it when the latest segment ends in late February.

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Gold Futures Rise as U.S. Consumer Sentiment Ebbs; Silver Jumps

PT. Equityworld Futures - Gold futures rose for the second straight day as weaker U.S. consumer confidence added to concerns that the economy is slowing, boosting demand for the precious metal as a haven. Silver jumped the most in four weeks.

The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary sentiment index decreased to 93.6 from a final January reading of 98.1 that was the highest since the start of 2004, figures showed Friday. A report on Thursday revealed that sales at U.S. retailers fell more than forecast in January.

Gold dropped 29 percent in the previous two years, posting consecutive annual losses for the first time since 1998. Faster U.S. expansion prompted some investors to lose faith in the metal as a store of value amid speculation that the Federal Reserve would raise interest rates. Prices rebounded 8 percent in January as slowing foreign economies cast doubt that American growth would remain resilient.

Gold futures for April delivery climbed 0.5 percent to settle at $1,227.10 an ounce at 1:38 p.m. on the Comex in New York. Yesterday, the price rose 0.1 percent.

This week, the price dropped 0.6 percent, the third straight decline.

Silver futures for March delivery jumped 3 percent to $17.294 an ounce, the biggest gain for a most-active contract since Jan. 16.
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Gold Demand Declines as China Loses Biggest-Buyer Spot to India

PT. Equityworld Futures - Gold demand fell for a third year on a slump in purchases from China, costing the country its place as the world™s biggest buyer.

Global demand slid 4 percent to a five-year low of 3,923.7 metric tons in 2014, the World Gold Council said in a report Thursday. In China, purchases of bars and coins for investment dropped by 50 percent and jewelry buying retreated from a record, according to the London-based group.

The strengthening dollar and prospects for higher U.S. interest rates have curbed gold™s appeal as a protection of wealth, leading to two years of falling prices. While the metal has rebounded over the past three months, it™s still within 10 percent of a four-year low.

Gold rose 3.2 percent to $1,222.62 an ounce in London this year, India took China™s spot as biggest buyer of the metal, reclaiming the position it last held in 2012, after jewelry demand jumped to the highest level since at least 1995.

Purchases of necklaces, bracelets and earrings by Indian shoppers rose 8 percent even amid import restrictions, while Chinese consumers bought 33 percent less. Combined bar and coin investment was down 50 percent in both countries.

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Gold Rebounds From One-Month Low as Greek Talks Reach Impasse

PT. Equityworld Futures - Gold rebounded from the lowest level in a month as European leaders failed to agree on Greece™s bailout program after talks in Brussels.
Bullion for immediate delivery rose as much as 0.4 percent to $1,223.57 an ounce and traded at $1,223.35 at 9:35 a.m. in Singapore on Thursday, according to Bloomberg generic pricing. Earlier, bullion fell to $1,215.30, the lowest level since Jan. 9, after the dollar advanced to 10-year high.
Gold climbed 3.3 percent this year as the Greek crisis and more stimulus in Europe and Asia offset the impact of a stronger dollar and prospects for higher U.S. rates. Euro-region finance ministers failed at the meeting to reach an agreement on how to keep bailout funds flowing to Greece and are set to resume talks next week. The impasse risks leaving Greece without funding by the end of this month, when the current bailout expires.
Eurogroup Chairman Jeroen Dijsselbloem said that while the ministers covered a lot of ground, they didn™t reach a joint conclusion on how to take the next steps. A Greek official said that no agreement had been made and the government won™t accept an extension of the existing bailout program.
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was at 1,173.92 from 1,174.87 on Wednesday, the highest close since at least December 2004. The gauge is 3.8 percent higher this year amid speculation that the Federal Reserve will start to increase borrowing costs.
Gold for April delivery rose 0.3 percent to $1,223.10 an ounce on the Comex after dropping on Wednesday to $1,216.50, the lowest price since Jan. 9.
Silver for immediate delivery added 0.2 percent to $16.8416 an ounce. Spot platinum was 0.3 percent higher at $1,197.25 an ounce, rebounding from $1,192 on Wednesday, the lowest level since Jan. 2. Palladium rose 0.3 percent to $770.95 an ounce.

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Gold Futures Drop to One-Month Low as Dollar Rally Curbs Demand

PT. Equityworld Futures - Gold futures fell to the lowest in almost a month as gains for the dollar cut demand for the precious metal as an alternative asset.
The dollar climbed to a 10-year high against a basket of 10 counterparts as traders sought safety from volatility in emerging markets. Investors favored the U.S. currency over gold as signs of a stronger American economy increase the likelihood that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates for the first time since 2006.
Gold dropped 29 percent in the previous two years, posting the first consecutive annual decline since 1998 as equities surged to a record and the U.S. economy gained traction. Higher rates cut gold™s allure because the metal generally offers investors returns only through price gains. A government report Tuesday that showed gains for American job openings underscored the thriving labor market.
Gold futures for April delivery fell 1 percent to settle at $1,219.60 an ounce on the Comex in New York, after touching a four-week low of $1,218.20.

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Gold Prices Rise With Silver as Concern on Greek Standoff Mounts

PT. Equityworld Futures - Gold and silver futures rose for the first time in three sessions as a dispute between Greece™s prime minister and international lenders escalated, boosting demand for the precious metals as a haven.

Greece™s bonds and stocks fell as Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras showed little sign of backing down in a standoff with creditors as he began three days of debates on his government™s policy plans. In January, gold rose 8 percent, partly on European economic concerns.

Holdings in global exchange-traded products backed by gold increased on Friday to a four-month high, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. They have climbed 5 percent this year. The spot price of the metal priced in euros has gained 12 percent this year.

Gold futures for April delivery rose 0.6 percent to settle at $1,241.50 an ounce at 1:48 p.m. on the Comex in New York. The price dropped 2.4 percent in the previous two sessions on gains in the U.S. economy.

Greece will seek about 10 billion euros ($11.3 billion) in short-term financing in an effort to stave off a cash crunch.

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