Gold steady at B18,750 amid stock rally

Gold prices were flat at 18,750 baht per baht-weight in Bangkok on Saturday.

The Gold Traders Association announced the buying price at 18,650 baht and the selling price at 18,750 baht per baht-weight for bullion.

For ornaments, the buying and selling prices were 18,373.92 baht and 19,150 baht per baht-weight respectively.

The prices were adjusted three times on Friday for a total loss of 150 baht from the previous day.

Bloomberg reported from London on Saturday gold futures fell for a second straight day as a rally in global equities and a rebound in crude oil cut demand for a haven.

US stocks tracked gains in Asia and Europe as an index of world equities headed for its biggest advance since June 2012. The dollar rose against the euro after European Central Bank President Mario Draghi indicated that policy makers may bolster economic support as soon as March. Oil headed for its biggest two-day increase since 2008.

Gold is this month’s best-performing metal on the Bloomberg Commodity Index, as concern over China’s slowdown and a crash in oil prices to a 12-year low drove demand for haven assets. Traders have pushed back bets on when the Federal Reserve will next raise interest rates. Higher rates would damp gold’s appeal because the metal doesn’t pay interest.

Bullion dropped “because the US dollar is appreciating and stock markets and oil prices are gaining significantly, which points to at least temporarily higher risk appetite,” Commerzbank AG analysts including Daniel Briesemann wrote in a note.

Gold futures for February delivery slipped 0.2% to settle at $1,096.30 an ounce at 1.53pm on the Comex in New York, paring this week’s gain to 0.5%. Prices are up 3.4% this month.

“We could still see gold move higher” following the recent equity rout and shift in US rate expectations, Matthew Turner, an analyst at Macquarie Group Ltd in London, said by telephone. The Fed’s Jan 27 meeting and jobs data will remain crucial for gold, he said.

Holdings in exchange-traded products backed by gold rose 2.6 tonnes to 1,500 tonnes as of Thursday, data compiled by Bloomberg show. Assets are set for a third weekly increase, the longest run since October.