Jan 7: Vietnam gold eases to vnd35,8mlntael on global gold correction

Local gold prices on January 7 plunged to VND35.58million/tael, down over VND200,000 while world gold prices hovered around $1,370. Meanwhile, dollar prices edged up VND30 to VND21.100 in the free market.

SJC in Hanoi was listed at VND35.5billion/tael and VND35.6million/tael for bid and ask, respectively. Meanwhile, SJC in HCMC was listed at VND35.5million/tael and VND35.58milllion/tael for bid and ask, respectively.

Sacombank-SBJ in Ho Chi Minh was listed at VND35.51million/tael and VND35.61million/tael for bid and ask, respectively.

Bid and ask of Thang Long gold bullion, a product of Bao Tin Minh Chau were listed at VND35.55million/tael and VND35.66million/tael for bid and ask, respectively.

Local trading remained thin in the run-up to the Lunar New Year, said Sacombank’s gold trader.

In Asian trade this morning, spot gold was little changed at $1,370.35 an ounce by 0344 GMT, posing for a 3.5% loss from the previous week, its largest weekly loss since late May.

U.S. gold futures was little changed at $1,370.4.

Some economists raised their forecast, after Thursday’s ADP report showed a surprise jump in private jobs number for December. A Reuters poll showed that payrolls likely increased by 175,000 in December, revised up from 140,000.

“Gold is probably consolidating ahead of the non-farm payrolls data,” said Darren Heathcote, head of trading at Investec Australia.

“If we see a weaker number, it would be negative for the dollar and positive for gold. Unless the number is much stronger than expected, we probably won’t see much move in gold prices.”

But some analysts said the non-farm payrolls number is not always correlated with the ADP figures, and the dollar could face some downside risk if the data turned out not as strong.

In the global market, the greenback held to its gains on Friday, while the euro fell to its lowest in nearly four months against the dollar on growing worries about sovereign debt problems spreading to the wider euro zone.

In the local market, dollar prices were quoted at VND21.020 and VND21.100 for bid and ask, respectively in the free market. Meanwhile, those at Vietcombank were capped at VND19,495 and VND19,500.

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