Jan 11: Vietnam gold edges up to VND35.78Mln/tael, Dollar holds

Local gold prices on January 11 edged up to VND35.78million/tael as the global gold prices inched up to $1,375.86 an ounce. Meanwhile, dollar prices held stable in the free market.

Bid and ask of Thang Long gold bullion, a product of Bao Tin Minh Chau were listed at VND35.69million/tael and VND35.78million/tael for bid and ask, respectively.

SJC in Hanoi was listed at VND35.69billion/tael and VND35.77million/tael for bid and ask, respectively. Meanwhile, SJC in HCMC was listed at VND35.69million/tael and VND35.75milllion/tael for bid and ask, respectively.

Sacombank-SBJ in Ho Chi Minh was listed at VND35.72million/tael and VND35.75million/tael for bid and ask, respectively.

Earlier on January 1, the central bank extended the deadline for local firms and banks to import gold till the end of February, 2011 in an attempt to bring prices in line with those in the global gold market, the local newswire Tuoi Tre reported.

Buying appetite was stronger in the run-up to the Lunar New Year, said local gold traders.

In Asian trade this morning, gold inched up $1.41 an ounce to $1,375.86 an ounce by 0411 GMT on persistent worries about indebted euro zone countries, while purchases from investors and jewelers pushed up premiums for gold bars to their highest in two years.

Gold was well below a historical high of around $1,430 struck in December.

U.S. gold futures for February added $2.1 an ounce to $1,376.2 an ounce. The world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR Gold Trust said its holdings rose to 1,272.682 tons by Jan. 10 from 1,271.164 tons on Jan. 7.

“There’s a huge demand from China. Refineries just opened and there’s not much stock around, so it’s a bit tight,” said Ronald Leung, director of Lee Cheong Gold Dealers in Hong Kong.

Investors will also closely watch the developments in Portugal, which is widely seen as the country next in line in the euro zone to need a bailout after Greece and Ireland, said Leung.

The focus this week is on whether Lisbon will be able to raise funds in the debt market on Wednesday or be forced to turn to the EU and IMF for financial aid.

“Trading is mixed this morning, with moderate trading volume,” said a dealer in Singapore. “The market is currently short of physical supply. We have no available stocks to offer except for those who have booked in advance.

In the local market, dollar prices held steady at VND21,080 and VND21,110 for bid and ask, respectively in the free market. Meanwhile, those at Vietcombank were capped at VND19,490 and VND19,500 for bid and ask, respectively. – Stoxplus.com

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