Precious Metals Market Review by Bill Musgrave – American Gold Exchange
Gold slid 0.2% to close at $1,142.60, posting its seventh straight down session as the dollar extended its rally after the ECB announced deeper monetary stimulus in the Eurozone.
Following a meeting of the ECB’s governing council, Mario Draghi said the central bank will boost asset purchases by as much as $1.2 trillion over the next two years and explore additional measures to stimulate the faltering Eurozone economy.
The dollar jumped to a 26-month high against the euro after the ECB statement, rising against most major rivals. Just a few days after Japan expanded its quantitative easing program, the dollar also hit a new seven-year high against the yen.
The buck’s rally was also supported by lower U.S. jobless claims, which added to speculation among traders that the Fed will tighten interest rates sooner than mid-2015. A stronger dollar weighs on gold and other commodities denominated in it for international trade by making them more expensive to users of other currencies.
The other precious metals tracked lower with gold. Silver dropped 0.2% while platinum and palladium lost 1.1% and 0.7%, respectively.
At the Comex close: December gold for slid $3.10 to $1,142.60; December silver dropped 3 cents to $15.41; January platinum lost $13.50 to $1,197.10 ; and December palladium fell $5.25 to $752.60 an ounce.
