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Gold, Silver Surge to Three-Month Highs

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WASHINGTON – Gold and silver prices hit their highest levels in three months on Friday, as a combination of U.S. economic worries and encouraging data from China continued to weigh on the dollar and boost prices for precious metals.

The most actively traded contract, gold for April delivery, rose for an eighth straight session to trade at $1,317.60 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange, up $17.40, or 1.3%, marking its highest level since Nov. 7.

Silver prices saw even greater gains, with the contract for March delivery rising 75 cents, or 4%, to $21.15 an ounce, a price not seen since Nov. 12.

Gold is up 9.5% since the start of the year, and silver has gained nearly 13%. The WSJ Dollar Index, which gauges the dollar against a basket of major currencies, has lost 1.4% from its 2014 highs and recently traded at 73.459, its lowest level since the start of the year.

Some investors view precious metals as havens that should perform better than assets such as stocks amid economic turmoil. A weaker greenback makes dollar-denominated gold futures appear cheaper for buyers using other currencies, and some traders use gold as a hedge against a declining dollar.

“As long as you have concerns about the U.S. economy, there will be capital moving around, and some of it will inevitably find its way into precious metals,” said Peter Hug, director of precious metals at Kitco Metals in Montreal.

Concerns of a flagging recovery came back into focus Thursday, when U.S. retail sales for January came in much weaker than expected, while the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits rose last week, the latest sign of an unsteady labor market. Those numbers came on the heels of disappointing job growth in December and January, data that has led some to believe the Federal Reserve may roll back its economic stimulus at a slower pace if the economy continues to look soft.

Gold and silver’s steady march higher has forced investors expecting a decline in precious metals to hedge their bets by purchasing contracts, causing prices to rise even more in a phenomenon known as a short squeeze, Mr. Hug said.

Precious-metals prices have also received a boost from Chinese trade data, which on Wednesday showed an unexpected surge in both import and exports in January, defying expectations of a slowdown in the economy of the world’s largest gold consumer. Some market participants, however, said the Chinese data could be the result of companies overstating the value of their shipments to get money past China’s strict capital controls and into the country for investment, a practice known as overinvoicing.

– WALLSTREET JOURNAL

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Business

Nigeria set to boost Naira value and foreign reserve with local gold production, as Tinubu receives gold bar

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IN  a significant move to strengthen Nigeria’s economy, President Bola Tinubu received a symbolic gold bar on Sunday from the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake.

This gesture marks the commencement of the National Gold Purchase Program (NGPP), aimed at boosting the naira’s value and enhancing the country’s foreign reserves.

Minister Alake expressed gratitude to President Tinubu for his support of reforms in the solid minerals sector.

He highlighted that the NGPP, which involves sourcing gold from artisanal and small-scale miners and refining it to meet the London Bullion Market Association’s Good Delivery Standard, will substantially contribute to Nigeria’s economic stability.

Alake stated “This initiative will significantly increase our foreign reserves and strengthen the naira. The refined gold will be supplied to the Central Bank of Nigeria, marking a crucial step in our economic strategy.”

The presentation also underscored the first commercial transaction under the NGPP, establishing a centralized gold purchasing system that integrates small-scale miners, cooperatives, and production units across the nation.

This program is expected to provide a structured market for gold, fostering economic growth and stability.

He said, The successful completion of the first commercial transaction clearly demonstrates the National Gold Purchase Program’s effectiveness. It has increased the nation’s foreign reserves assets and shown that using the Nigerian Naira to purchase a liquid asset traded in United States Dollars, such as gold, is a viable strategy. This transaction has also underscored the potential of the National Gold Purchase Program to enhance fiscal and monetary stability.”

Alake added that the initial commercial transaction under the program resulted in a +US$5 million boost in Nigeria’s foreign reserve assets.

The transaction involved refining over 70 kilograms of gold to meet the London Bullion Market quality standard and aggregating locally mined gold, thereby infusing approximately NGN6 billion into the rural economy.

President Tinubu expressed appreciation for the Ministry’s accomplishment in advancing the government’s goal of economic diversification by acknowledging and displaying the symbolic gold bar

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Solid Minerals

FG Fingers Foreigners Sponsoring Banditry For Illegal Mining

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The Nigerian Government has threatened to come down heavily on foreigners sponsoring bandictory as a way of sustaining illegal mining activities in parts of the country.

The warning was handed down in Abuja by Minister, Solid Minerals Development, Dr Oladele Alake, while receiving a delegation of the Nigeria-China Chamber of Mines led by its National President, Dr. Olugbenga Ajala.

Details of these were contained in a statement released by Head, Press & PR, Ministry of Solid Minerals Development, Alaba Balogun over the weekend.

The statement cited, Dr Alake, thus, “The government will come down firmly on these unscrupulous foreign operators sponsoring banditry to perpetrate illegal mining: let me use this medium to appeal through you to tell those sponsors to desist or face the full wrath of the law.”

According to Dr Alake, the Ministry is committed to establishing a multi-agency task force that will end the activities of illegal miners and their collaborators.

The Minster made it clear that the FG had given illegal miners a 30-day-ultimatum to legitimise their businesses, quit Nigeria or incur the wrath of the law.

According to him, this will help “to streamline and structure the Small-Scale Artisanal Miners for maximum yield to the Federal Government.”

The delegation paid a courtesy call on the Minsiter at the Ministry’s headquarters in Abuja.

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Energy

Fuel Scarcity: Govt Yet to Increase Pump Prices – NMDPRA

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A long queue at an NNPC fuel station

By Edozie Obasi-Eze

 

Amidst heightening uncertainties in the domestic petroleum products market characterised by scarcity and irregular pricing, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has declared that there’s no intention to review pump prices upwards.

This was contained in an advisory issued by General Manager, Corporate Communications, NMDPRA, Kimchi Apollo.

He stated that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) had imported PMS with current stock levels sufficient for 34 days.

In an attempt to address panic buying and speculations which have seen price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) oscillate between N180-N250 in the Lagos area, Apollo assured that there was enough quantity of the product in the country already.

He said, “Consequently, marketers and the general public are advised to avoid panic buying, diversion of products and hoarding.

“In keeping with the Authority’s responsibilities as outlined in the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), the Authority assures the public that it would continue to monitor the supply and distribution of petroleum products nationwide, especially during this holiday season.”

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