Feb 8: Vietnam gold breaks down VND36Mln/tael, Dollar up

Local gold prices on February 8 undercut the threshold of VND36million/tael to VND35.89million/tael , while global gold was barely changed. Dollar prices edged up to VND21,500 in the free market.

At 11:17 a.m., Sacombank-SBJ in Ho Chi Minh was listed at VND35.83million/tael and VND35.89 million/tael for bid and ask, respectively.

Bid and ask of Thang Long gold bullion, a product of Bao Tin Minh Chau were listed at VND35.87million/tael and VND35.97million/tael for bid and ask, respectively.

SJC in Hanoi was listed at VND35.8million/tael and VND35.92million/tael for bid and ask, respectively. Meanwhile, SJC in HCMC was listed at VND35.8million/tael and VND35.9milllion/tael for bid and ask, respectively.

In Asian trade this morning, gold was barely changed on Tuesday, under pressure from a rally in global stock markets and improved prospects of economic recovery, but inflationary pressures blamed on rising commodity prices could underpin sentiment.

Spot gold added 50 cents to $1,350.96 an ounce by 0320 GMT, well below a lifetime high around $1,430 an ounce hit in December. U.S. gold futures for April rose $4.1 an ounce to $1,352.3 an ounce.

The world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR Gold Trust , said its holdings slipped to 1,228.864 tons by Feb. 4 from 1,229.277 tons on Feb. 3.

“The outflow in the ETF is a bit negative for gold. We have to see if money flowing into the stock market is temporary or not,” said Ronald Leung, director of Lee Cheong Gold Dealers in Hong Kong. “But it seems $1,300 is a very good support.”

Concerns over higher inflation in emerging markets, indications of an economic recovery gathering pace in the United States, modest valuations and tentative signs of stability in the euro zone sovereign debt crisis have fueled the outperformance of shares in developed markets.

“The price has gone up and they were buying at the low of $1,320, so obviously they are waiting to see the directions from here on,” said a dealer in Singapore.

“The Thais are telling me that there is a mix of selling and buying.”

It was unclear, however, whether the buying was related to a clash between Thai and Cambodian troops in disputed land around a 900-year-old mountaintop temple.

In the local market, dollar prices were quoted at VND21,400 and VND21,500 for bid and ask, representing corresponding increases of VND100 and VND50 from before the Lunar New Year. Meanwhile, those at Vietcombank were capped at VND19,495 and VND19,500 for bid and ask, respectively. – Stoxplus.com

Tags: vietnam gold, Vietnam gold market, Vietnam gold prices