Survey Participants See Higher Gold Prices Next Week

Friday September 28, 2012 12:10 PM

Gold prices are finding underlying support from ultra-loose monetary policy and rising European debt problems and this could give the yellow metal further strength next week, say most participants in the Kitco News weekly Gold Survey.

In the Kitco News Gold Survey, out of 33 participants, 24 responded this week. Of those 24 participants, 20 see prices up, while two see prices down, and two are neutral or see prices moving sideways. Market participants include bullion dealers, investment banks, futures traders, money managers and technical-chart analysts.

Several participants who saw higher prices voiced similar reasons to what Carlos Perez-Santalla, precious metals broker at PVM Futures, said: “up QEF (quantitative easing forever), South African mounting troubles, European debt troubles and PBOC (People’s Bank of China) actions.”

Gold will rise next week, said Adam Hewison, president and chief strategist with INO and MarketClub.com. “Gold has become the new Apple for investors, look for this market to move over $2,000 by the end of the year,” he added.

Not everyone is forecasting higher prices. After such a strong rally, a few participants said they were looking for gold to retrace these gains, so they expected prices to be down next week.

Others who are neutral or see prices trading around current levels said gold is in a holding pattern for time being and needs time to digest the current rally.

By Debbie Carlson of Kitco News dcarlson@kitco.com

Pelanggan Genneva buat laporan polis

28 Sep 2012

Ramai gigit jari lepas syarikat gagal penuhi kontrak untuk beli semula emas yang dijual

Oleh

NORHAIZA HASHIM

SEKUMPULAN pelanggan yang membeli wafer dan jongkong emas daripada syarikat dagangan emas, Genneva Pte Ltd, terpaksa 'gigit jari' apabila syarikat itu enggan mengotakan perjanjian dalam kontrak mereka untuk membeli balik emas tersebut dan mengembalikan duit mereka.

Beberapa pelanggan - termasuk mereka yang telah melaburkan sehingga $1 juta - telah pun membuat laporan polis dan menyaman syarikat itu.

Sejak diperkenalkan di sini pada 2008, Genneva telah menarik 10,000 pelanggan di Singapura dan dianggarkan 25 hingga 30 peratus terdiri daripada pelanggan Melayu.

Kunjungan Berita Harian (BH) ke pejabat Genneva di Orchard Towers semalam menunjukkan ramai pelanggan dan ejen-ejen berkumpul untuk mendapatkan penjelasan daripada syarikat itu. Lebih 200 ejen menghadiri taklimat semalam.

Salah seorang pelanggan Genneva, Cik Marian (bukan nama sebenar), ingin menjual emasnya yang bernilai sebanyak $50,000 pada tarikh yang tertera dalam kontraknya, tetapi syarikat itu enggan menerimanya.

"Saya sudah tanya mereka sebanyak empat kali. Tapi, mereka kata syarikat tidak ada duit. Mereka kasi baucar untuk saya dapatkan duit pada tarikh yang ditetapkan dalam baucar itu. Tapi, apabila saya pergi ke pejabat Genneva pada tarikh tersebut, sekali lagi mereka tidak mengotakan janji mereka,'' katanya, dengan nada yang marah.

Beliau telah membuat laporan polis bersama 10 lagi rakannya semalam.

Seorang lagi pembeli yang ditemui telah membeli jongkong emas bernilai $300,000 bersama bapanya.

"Ejen saya kata selepas tempoh tamat, saya boleh jual balik emas itu dan mendapat duit saya sebanyak $300,000. Setakat ini, saya hanya dapat $12,000. Ejen saya memberikan pelbagai alasan dan menyatakan syarikat tidak mempunyai duit untuk membayar saya,'' kata beliau.

Ketika dihubungi semalam, jurucakap polis berkata: "Ia tidak wajar bagi kami membuat komen mengenai siasatan polis, jika ada.''

Genneva Pte Ltd telah diletakkan dalam Senarai Amaran Pelabur (IAL) oleh Penguasa Kewangan Singapura (MAS) kerana tidak mempunyai lesen atau dikawal oleh bank pusat itu.

"MAS amat menggalakkan pelanggan yang mendapatkan khidmat kewangan agar berurusan dengan pihak yang dikawal oleh bank pusat itu sahaja. Jika mereka memilih berurusan dengan pihak yang tidak dikawal oleh MAS, mereka melepaskan perlindungan yang diberikan di bawah undang-undang yang ditadbirkan MAS,'' kata jurucakap MAS.

Dibentuk 2008, Genneva beroperasi sebagai sebuah syarikat yang membeli dan menjual emas. Apa yang menarik perhatian pelanggan menyertai skim itu ialah pelanggan mendapat diskaun sebanyak 2 peratus setiap bulan selama tiga bulan dalam kontrak yang amat popular di kalangan pelanggannya di sini.

Diskaun itu akan dibayar oleh Genneva dalam bentuk tunai.

Pada akhir 90 hari, bergantung pada skim yang disertai pelanggan, Genneva akan memberikan pilihan kepada pelanggan menjual balik emas itu kepadanya pada harga asal yang dibayar pelanggan.

Namun, apa yang pelanggan tidak sedar ialah Genneva menjual emas kepada pelanggan pada kadar premium sebanyak 20-30 peratus.

Genneva menjual emas pada harga $96,000 setiap kilo atau $96 setiap gram bagi bulan Ogos. Namun, UOB, yang menyediakan khidmat pelaburan emas, menjual emas pada harga $74,500.

TIPS Elak di tipu dalam pembelian emas dan perak

Siasat Terlebih Dahulu jika syarikat berikut membuat aktiviti di bawah: 

1. Pemberian Dividen Setiap Bulan. Tanpa Buat Kerja
2. Pemberian dalam Bentuk Hibah setiap bulan.
3. Perkongsian Keuntungan mengikut % setiap bulan.
4. Bayaran Secara Ansuran mengikut kontrak. Emas akan diserahkan kepada pembeli selepas bayaran penuh selesai.
5. Syarikat yang menawarkan pajak gadai tanpa lesen.
6. Syarikat yang menawarkan kadar pertukaran matawang asing tanpa lesen.
7. Syarikat yang menawarkan pinjaman tanpa lesen
8. Syarikat yang menawarkan khidmat sewa emas perak dan di bayar setiap bulan.
9. Koperasi yang tidak mendaftar

TIPS : SELAMAT DARI DI TIPU.
1. Beli Emas Perak dapat fizikal BUKAN kertas / online akaun
2. Emas Perak Pegang Sendiri JANGAN Kasi orang lain yang pegang.
3. Pastikan product tersebut mempunyai certificate / assayer yang di sahkan ketulenan emas perak tersebut bagi mengelakkan penipuan ketulenan.
4. Beli emas perak dengan orang yang dikenali dan dipercayai.GSR adalah syarikat yang membekalkan emas perak fizikal dengan harga murah / borong ( Seperti Kedai Emas di luar) . Sebagai contoh : Anda beli emas anda dapat emas kemudian anda simpan sendiri atau memakainya terpulang pada anda semua sebab itu hak anda.

Gold May Hit $2,500 in 3 Years as Banks Buy, Newmont Says

Gold may rise to $2,500 an ounce in three years as investors buy the metal as a hedge against inflation, said Richard O’Brien, chief executive officer of Newmont Mining Corp. (NEM), the second-biggest producer by sales.

Demand from central banks on price dips will probably help create a floor for gold prices at around $1,600, O’Brien, 58, said in a phone interview yesterday from Las Vegas, where he’s attending the MINExpo conference.

“The downside is fairly limited,” the CEO of the Greenwood Village, Colorado-based company said. “If we see some economic growth we could see $2,500 in the next three or four years.” A global economic recession would be negative for all commodities, including gold, O’Brien said.

Gold has risen for 11 straight years, reaching a record $1,923.70 an ounce on Sept. 6, 2011, inNew York as investors add to holdings using exchange-traded products and central banks expand reserves. O’Brien said in September 2011 that gold may reach $2,000 an ounce by the end of that year and $2,300 by the end of 2012.

Central banks and the International Monetary Fund were the largest bullion owners with 29,500 metric tons at the end of last year, or 17 percent of all mined metal, World Gold Council data show. O’Brien said central banks will probably purchase at least 450 tons of gold next year as they buy the metal to diversify reserves and protect against inflation.

Central banks bought 254.2 tons in the first half of 2012 and may add almost 500 tons for the full year, the London-based World Gold Council said last month.

Kazakh Reserves

Kazakhstan expanded its gold reserves for a 13th consecutive month in August, buying 1.4 metric tons, data on the IMF’s website showed. South Korea bought 16 tons in July, and Paraguay purchased 7.5 tons that month, the data show.

Gold for December delivery fell 1 percent to $1,748.70 at 9:59 a.m. on the Comex in New York. Gold futures have risen 11 percent this year. The metal will average $1,772 in 2013, $1,652 in 2014 and $1,540 in 2015, according to the median of analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

“We are just in the middle of what will continue to be a very bull market for gold coming into the future,” O’Brien said in a Sept. 24 speech at the Las Vegas conference. The metal is trading “more like a currency than like a commodity.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-09-26/newmont-says-gold-may-hit-2-500-in-3-years-as-central-banks-buy.html

Gold Prices Sink on Eurozone Struggles

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Gold prices were sinking Monday as investors moved into U.S. dollars as a safe haven on reports that Germany and France were clashing about a timeline to introduce a banking union.
Gold for December delivery was falling $13.30 to $1,764.70 an ounce at the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The gold price traded as high as $1,775.30 and as low as $1,757.90 an ounce, while the spot price was shrinking $12.30, according to Kitco's gold index.

"Gold price is an economic and political barometer and the EU banking discord and slow economic recovery have brought more dollar buyers to the table," George Gero, precious metals strategist at RBC Wealth Management, wrote in a note on Monday.

Silver prices for December delivery were falling about 70 cents to $33.94 an ounce, while the U.S. dollar index was gaining 0.38% to $79.68.

Gold had enjoyed a sharp rally two weeks ago after the Federal Reserve announced a new asset-backed purchasing program that has been dubbed QE3. The stimulus plan, theoretically, would push new cash into the monetary system, which would raise inflationary pressures.

But after the move of more than $38 gold futures made on Sept. 13, the price of the yellow metal has retreated slightly as profit-taking and uncertainty in Europe have driven recent action.

Reports suggested that the eurozone's two most influential players in bank bailouts were struggling to reach an agreement on timetables, while other reports emerged that Greece's budget shortfall was much greater than previously expected.

Greek officials have refuted those rumors.

The euro was declining against the U.S. dollar on Monday to $1.2913, down from the previous close of $1.2981.

Typically, as the U.S. dollar strengthens against the euro, gold prices sink due to the increasing value of the paper currency against the precious metal.

Gold mining stocks were mostly lower Monday. Shares of NovaGold Resources (NG) were dipping 2.8%, while Randgold Resources (GOLD) was falling 2.5%.

Among other mining stocks, Newmont Mining (NEM) was down 1.4%, and Eldorado Gold(EGO) was declining 0.9%.

Gold ETF iShares Gold Trust (IAU) was down 0.52%.

Buyer Beware: Fake Gold Epidemic Emerging

By Brittany Stepniak
Saturday, September 8th, 2012

The 2012 Summer Olympics have come and gone, and you probably learned that true gold isn't easy to come by — even for the world's most celebrated athletes. 

A Gold Medal is only 6 grams gold — a measly 1.34%.

Copper, silver, and other metals make up the rest.

And Olympic Gold Medals aren't the only fakes out there...

Investors are riled up this year, as new cases unfold daily revealing fake gold bars being pawned off as the real deal.

Gold's Gilded Age

In March, UK media coverage exploded with a disturbing phenomena: gold bars filled with Tungsten instead of pure gold.

*Image courtesy of GoldSeek.

Gold owners have been shocked when they've attempted to cash in their gold, expecting a small fortune... and instead walked with a fraction of what they expected.

It's a real shame, but these are hard times and gold is perhaps the hottest of all commodities on the market...

And it's about to skyrocket in value yet again.

Gold's Recharged Bull Market

Christian DeHaemer delivered Wealth Daily readers some interesting news on the gold front this week.

A serious production delay in the gold market is under way after 34 miners were killed by police during a strike at Lonmin's Marikana platinum mine in South Africa, the world's third largest gold-producing nation.

Recent gold mining strikes have had a big impact on the price of gold bullion.

Add to that Bernanke's plans for QE3 (be ready for the Fed's next meeting to conclude on September 13, and they are expected to officially announce the next round of quantitative easing) and the worsening financial situation in Europe...

Experts and analysts have little reason to doubt gold is about to surge to record highs.

The Bad News

That's great news for gold investors — but not so great for those who lack experience when it comes to buying the yellow metal.

A surge in gold demand often leads inexperienced investors to buy for the first time... only to find out their precious purchases are tainted with less valuable goods, as heightened demand also beckons scams and fraud.

Since 2011 there have been hundreds of cases of Chinese counterfeiters.

These people openly brag about producing over 100,000 fake U.S. Silver Dollars per year — per counterfeiter in some cases. In fact, as much as 10% of China's GDP is a direct result of counterfeiting!

Fraudulent dealing can be catastrophically disastrous for investors who have put a sizable percentage of their net worth in counterfeit precious metal coins and bars.

Avoid the Counterfeit Trap

Even experts have been fooled by fake gold.

But you can avoid falling into that trap.

Just follow these ten tips compiled by the Gold Bullion Pro: 

1.) Look at the seller feedback and forums if possible.
If you don't do your homework, you could pay the price later.

2.) Ask for an assay test.
Do not trust a dealer who is not willing to wait for the test do be completed.

3.) Third-party specialist verificationMake sure the third party is reputable.

4.) Insist on seeing the certification. If the seller isn't willing to show you their gold's certification, don't buy.

5.) Use only reputable dealers.Use only the trusted dealers with a respectable business history.

6.) Insist on only stamped and minted precious metal products for small amounts. When buying small amounts of bullion, only choose those bars that are stamped and have serial numbers.

7.) Impartial grading 
When purchasing bullion via the Internet, ask for documentation on the impartial grading of the bullion products. Legitimate dealers should have this form of certification.

8.) Slabbing
Make sure the slabbing and the coin go together. Fake gold generally does not include slabbing.

9.) Test using a magnet. True gold is not magnetic. It should not react to a magnet at all. If it does, it's fake.

10.) Evaluate complaints and negative feedback about your dealer carefully.
When it comes to your dealer, don't risk even a single bad review mentioning fake gold. Find another dealer instead.

As Q3 looms, it's important to prepare yourself and your portfolio for the continued decline of the dollar.

Precious metals offer a good hedge as the Fed fires up the printing presses yet again — but it's important that you don't just load up on gold blindly...

Educate yourself on the market. Learn how to detect a fake gold bar for yourself before you visit a dealer. Keep these ten tips on hand when you go to make your purchase... and only buy from trusted dealers.

Fake Chinese Gold Discovered

By Christian A. DeHaemer | Thursday, September 20th, 2012

A ten ounce gold bar costing nearly $18,000 turned out to be a counterfeit.

The bar was filled with tungsten, which weighs almost the same as gold, but costs just over a dollar an ounce.

MyFoxNY reports:

Ibrahim Fadl bought the bar from a merchant who has sold him real gold before. But he heard counterfeit gold bars were going around, so he drilled into several of his gold bars worth $100,000 and saw gray tungsten — not gold.

What makes it so devious is a real gold bar is purchased with the serial numbers and papers, then it is hollowed out, the gold is sold, the tungsten is put in, then the bar is closed up.

Chinese Fraud

The Secret Service is now investigating this latest counterfeiting.

But this isn't the first time this has happened...

In March, gold bars filled with tungsten showed up in England, Australia, and Hong Kong.

It has even been rumored that some of the 200 metric ton gold sold to India from the IMF contained tungsten.

Of course, no one is talking.

In the short run, this will mean your ability to buy gold bars will be slowed as New York gold merchants figure out how to regain credibility (or until the whole matter is swept under the rug).

One way to avoid buying fake gold is to buy it in smaller quantities from reputable merchants. Though it requires a great deal of sophistication to fill a gold bar with tungsten, the manufacturing techniques make it more worth it in large bars versus small coins.

Wealth Daily readers have used Asset Marketing for their gold coins for years with nary a complaint. You can find them here.

Straight to the Source

The source of these fake gold bars is a criminal Chinese gang that produced them during the Clinton years.

The story goes that between 5,600 and 5,700 400oz bars — 60 metric tons — were counterfeited by a sophisticated criminal organization...

The Chinese arrested many of the perpetrators shortly after the scam was uncovered, but not before a sizable amount of the gold bars were sold...

It's thought that more than 1.5 million 400oz tungsten blanks were manufactured in the United States. Of those manufactured, some 640,000 bars received gold plating and were shipped Ft. Knox, where they remain to this day. This was the impetus for Ron Paul's call to edit Fort Knox.

The remaining bars were gold plated and sold on the international market, where they show up from time to time in cities around the world.

This begs the question about the gold resting five stories below the Federal Reserve Bank of New York...

Could the planet's largest gold vault — containing 25% of the world's gold — be counterfeit?

Of course it couldn't... but don't hold your breath waiting for clarity.

Money Printing

In the aftermath of QE3 (or what some are now calling QE-finity, due to its never-ending nature), the price of hard assets must go up in relation to the U.S. dollar over the long term.

Silver, unlike gold, is much harder to counterfeit.

Due to the industrial nature of silver, it is melted down and used in manufacturing. This is something that would be sacrilegious to do to a gold bar with its certification numbers and seals.

Thus, fake silver bars would be more likely to be discovered.

The numbers I see are that gold is more than forty times more likely to be counterfeited than silver.

The silver that is counterfeited is usually in the form of bars that weigh ten onces and up.

U.S. silver coins that were produced before 1965 that are 90% silver and 10% copper are the most likely to be be real due to their small size.