09 December 2024

The Sharp Perspective

Gold prices consolidate below highs as traders weigh up what a Trump presidency will mean for the markets

After gains of 35% since the start of the year, and 54% since the start of the rally in October 2023, a period of consolidation is unsurprising given the rapid pace of the rally

08 December 2022

LAWRIE WILLIAMS: Chinese Central Bank confirms 32 tonne gold purchase

Media reports indicate that the Chinese Central Bank has reported a surprise increase in its gold reserve in November equivalent to 32 tonnes. Hitherto it has been reticent about reporting gold reserve increases, this being around the first time in 3 years it has reported any such changes

06 December 2022

LAWRIE WILLIAMS: Gold rising to $2,250, BTC falling to $5,000 - both next year!

A 'surprise' scenario from Standard Chartered Bank's Head of Research, Eric Robertsen, sees the gold price rising to $2,250 and bitcoin falling to $5,000 next year if current patterns play out.

01 December 2022

LAWRIE WILLIAMS: Gold, equities, bitcoin – all open new month on the up.

The combination of a more dovish statement from Fed Chair Jerome Powell and the latest PCE data release drove gold, silver, equities and bitcoin all higher in the U.S. and globally, with gold breaking through the $1,800 barrier at one time.

10 November 2022

LAWRIE WILLIAMS: CPI and Midterms boost gold, equities and bitcoin

The U.S. Midterm elections which saw President Biden and the Democrats perform far less badly than anticipated, closely followed by the latest CPI figures which saw inflation come in lower than expected, saw gold, silver, pgms. equities and bitcoin all surge sharply.

16 October 2022

LAWRIE WILLIAMS: Blip in China September gold demand y-o-y?

After a succession of months where SGE gold withdrawals this year were higher than a year ago, September saw the reverse and the cumulative total for the year has dropped below that of 2021 despite anecdotal evidence that Chinese gold demand remains strong. We speculate that Russia, though, may be secretively exporting substantial amounts of gold cross-border as traditional western markets are closed by sanctions.

25 September 2022

LAWRIE WILLIAMS: China, Turkey, India biggest importers of Swiss gold in August

08 September 2022

LAWRIE WILLIAMS: China gold consumption still climbing y-o-y

The latest gold withdrawal figures for August from the Shanghai Gold Exchange suggest that Chinese gold consumption continues to rise year on year, but still remains well below its earlier peaks, but it could be making up for any shortfall in domestic production by buying Russian gold.

04 September 2022

LAWRIE WILLIAMS: Russian gold going to China, but are amounts as tiny as reported?

The Moscow Times reports on Russian gold shipments to China, but in amounts so small that it raises the question as to their accuracy given Russia's needs to finance its Ukraine war and China's perceived desire to build its own gold reserves.

22 August 2022

LAWRIE WILLIAMS: Russia still coy on its gold reserve position

Another month has passed without Russia making any announcement on any changes to its gold reserve position. The conclusion is that this information is being suppressed because of the ongoing war in Ukraine and that Russia may well be using its gold to help finance this.