Rising Local Gold Prices Hit Record High

[george]

Rising local gold prices hit record high

BANGKOK: -- Local gold price hits a record high of Bt10,700 per baht Monday due to the rising gold price on the world market.

Gold sold on the domestic market Monday sold at Bt10,400 per gold bar per baht in weight (15.16 grammes)and Bt10,700 for gold ornaments.

Higher prices of gold in the global market resulted as speculation shifted from the oil market to the gold market and some countries invested their foreign reserves to buy gold, according to the President of the Gold Traders Association, Mr. Chitti Tangsitpakdi.

He said he wouldn't forecast the trend of the gold price as it could influence the local market.

More owners have rushed to sell gold for profit. Many goldsmiths have been forced out of work as gold sales have fallen, he said.

Gold imports have dropped since November except those imported for re-export, he said.

Mr. Chitti dismissed a rumour that gold shops were buying gold at a lower price than its market value, confirmed that the buying and selling prices of gold were fixed at uniform rates nationwide.

--TNA 2005-12-12

[Pattaya_Fox]

Better buy those Chrissy trinkets before the price goes through the roof

[britmaveric]

Better wait til after crissie at this rate. I'm amazed prices are getting silly.

[ilyushin]

Still room for profit before Chinese New Year.

Jan 29 ,06

Edited December 12, 2005 by ilyushin

[AlexLah]

I told ya all some weeks ago.

Price of gold expected to hit 10.000 Bath.

Alex

[cclub75]

He said he wouldn't forecast the trend of the gold price as it could influence the local market.

Those officials have such an ego ! It's amazing.

There isn't a "local" market for gold : the "local market" follows the fixing in USD. Period.

So actually gold "value" is a 2 parameters equation :

-1- fixing in USD

-2- exchange rate USD/the local currency

For instance, the fixing may increase, but if the local currency appreciate against USD, than the price in local currency could stay flat.

So mister President Somchai can say whatever he wants... Nobody cares.

The trend is easy to read : gold is up, up, up, and up. Voila.

But I agree, at such a level, some effects could occur on the thai market (less demand for instance because nobody can afford anymore in Thailand).

[cclub75]

Better wait til after crissie at this rate. I'm amazed prices are getting silly.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Why do you speak about "silly" prices ?

You should try to understand why we have now such levels.

First : demand exceeds supply. True with India and China.

Second : when gold goes up, it means people are looking to protect themselves from inflation. Do we have inflation ? Oh yes ! In thailand for instance (6 %), and in the west we have bubbles (assets inflation): real estate.

Third : it reactivates the debate between fiat money (paper) and gold. It's a matter of trust. And as we can see the US runing at full speed the dollar printing machine (the new pdt of Fed is named "helicopter ben"....), then it makes sense to have some people who do not trust paper money anymore.

Look at the datas of the M1 in the USA on the last 5 years : it's a STORM of USD, a tsunami of paper USD. Litteraly.

So, it's just too easy to say that gold at +500 USD or +10 000 THB is a "silly price".

1 piece of bred costed XXX millions of Deutsch marks just after the WW1. Was it a "silly" price ? Not intelligent, not silly, it was simply THE price, because hyperinflation.

[britmaveric]

I'll state again its a silly price and pure speculative in nature. Demand falls, so will prices. Goldshops laying off workers is already a good indication that no one is buying.

[khunAus]

Better wait til after crissie at this rate. I'm amazed prices are getting silly.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Why do you speak about "silly" prices ?

You should try to understand why we have now such levels.

First : demand exceeds supply. True with India and China.

Second : when gold goes up, it means people are looking to protect themselves from inflation. Do we have inflation ? Oh yes ! In thailand for instance (6 %), and in the west we have bubbles (assets inflation): real estate.

Third : it reactivates the debate between fiat money (paper) and gold. It's a matter of trust. And as we can see the US runing at full speed the dollar printing machine (the new pdt of Fed is named "helicopter ben"....), then it makes sense to have some people who do not trust paper money anymore.

Look at the datas of the M1 in the USA on the last 5 years : it's a STORM of USD, a tsunami of paper USD. Litteraly.

So, it's just too easy to say that gold at +500 USD or +10 000 THB is a "silly price".

1 piece of bred costed XXX millions of Deutsch marks just after the WW1. Was it a "silly" price ? Not intelligent, not silly, it was simply THE price, because hyperinflation.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

What a silly rant......

[Maigo6]

He said he wouldn't forecast the trend of the gold price as it could influence the local market.

Those officials have such an ego ! It's amazing.

There isn't a "local" market for gold : the "local market" follows the fixing in USD. Period.

So mister President Somchai can say whatever he wants... Nobody cares.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I care.

I am sure you know more than him, you must do, you are farang, right ?

You are the sort of guy that sees a Thai guy driving a big Mercedes whilst you are waiting at the bus stop, and assumes he is either a driver for some Farang or he is a criminal.

If a European analyst gives forecasts or hedges his bets by not giving a forecast, its ok, if a Thai does the same he has a big ego ?

Turn out the light on your way back home.

[cclub75]

I care.

I am sure you know more than him, you must do, you are farang, right ? 

You are the sort of guy that sees a Thai guy driving a big Mercedes whilst you are waiting at the bus stop, and assumes he is either a driver for some Farang or he is a criminal.

If a European analyst gives forecasts or hedges his bets by not giving a forecast, its ok, if a Thai does the same he has a big ego ?   

Turn out the light on your way back home.   

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Well, if you don't have enough light to understand what I wrote, then go to Big C to do some shopping.

I said : gold market = New York, because of the fixing in USD. Okay ?

So mister Somchai, and you can sing a nice song, tell some poetry or the recipe of tom yum, NOBODY CARES, because it will not have an effect on the world gold market = the price.

Thailand IMPORTS its gold. It means, Thailand is linked to the world gold market.

As for the mercedes, i would disagree : i assume 2 possibilities : the driver is a politician, or he bought it with a loan.

Sorry hein.

[slim]

He said he wouldn't forecast the trend of the gold price as it could influence the local market.

I agree with cclub75.

Gold is world commodity. No forecast by Mr. Chitti Tangsitpakdi could possibly affect the price or "influence the local market" whatever he mysteriously means by that.

Besides, you dont have to be the President of the Gold Traders Association to know which way the price of gold is moving.

UP !!!

I recently heard a commodities trader say that if historical trends were anything to go by (and they frequently are) we are currently in year 5 of a 20 year rising market !!!

Gold will always be a safe refuge for your money for one simple reason.

Its rare.

No-one is going to stumble upon a seam of gold so valuable that gold prices would be depressed. Gold is reassuringly notoriously difficult to find in anything but small quantities and as a result will always appreciate in value.

[Anon999]

He said he wouldn't forecast the trend of the gold price as it could influence the local market.

I agree with cclub75.

Gold is world commodity. No forecast by Mr. Chitti Tangsitpakdi could possibly affect the price or "influence the local market" whatever he mysteriously means by that.

Besides, you dont have to be the President of the Gold Traders Association to know which way the price of gold is moving.

UP !!!

I recently heard a commodities trader say that if historical trends were anything to go by (and they frequently are) we are currently in year 5 of a 20 year rising market !!!

Gold will always be a safe refuge for your money for one simple reason.

Its rare.

No-one is going to stumble upon a seam of gold so valuable that gold prices would be depressed. Gold is reassuringly notoriously difficult to find in anything but small quantities and as a result will always appreciate in value.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

There seems to be some very short term memory problems that are clouding the issue. It was not so long ago that many banks, including the Bank of England, were divesting themselves of large quantities of gold. Consequently there was a glut of it on the market and the price obviously fell to a very low level. So now all those banks have lost billions as they no longer have the assests which they so wrongly assumed would not rise to the dizzy heights of yesteryear.

Gold is a world-wide commodity which is traded on the LME (London Metal Exchange) in USD where the futures dealing takes place. It is as with every commodity driven firstly by fear (i.e.state of US economy) and greed as the price rises more and more people join the rush to buy until it gets to a point where nobody is prepared to pay the price so it falls. The clever people start to sell for a big profit just after the price has stabilised and has started to fall. Those who got in early make a killing, then everyone starts to sell before the price falls too far and the little punter who gets in late loses his shirt.

It all comes down to fear and greed, that is what commodity traders feed on.

In just over three weeks the price of Gold has risen over 10%, it closed at $530.5US on Friday. However, there could still be a long way to go before it reaches the top, wherever that may be. The peak price on Friday was $544.5US and at the time of writing it is $541.5US.

Edited December 12, 2005 by Anon999

[Jeddah Jo]

I agree with cclub too. Gold is an internationally traded commodity denominated in US$. It is basically sold by weight in Thailand with a little added on for workmanship.

Markets are notoriously perverse and the fact that it has recently hit 22 year highs means it is actually more likely to carry on going up then crashing down any time soon.

Thailand consumption I suspect has a minimal impact on International demand for gold.

[Anon999]

I agree with cclub too. Gold is an internationally traded commodity denominated in US$. It is basically sold by weight in Thailand with a little added on for workmanship.

Markets are notoriously perverse and the fact that it has recently hit 22 year highs means it is actually more likely to carry on going up then crashing down any time soon.

Thailand consumption I suspect has a minimal impact on International demand for gold.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Absolutely.

[raro]

Better wait til after crissie at this rate. I'm amazed prices are getting silly.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

1 piece of bred costed XXX millions of Deutsch marks just after the WW1. Was it a "silly" price ? Not intelligent, not silly, it was simply THE price, because hyperinflation.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

..it was Reichsmark...

[mbkudu]

My wife's hoard has grown over the years that we've been married. It's worth a mint now.

[bob/nyc]

Yeah, like most poor Thais care about the price of gold.

[LivinLOS]

Well for the naysayers, good luck... We are in the early stages of a commodity bull.. Gold has recently depegged from the dollar (dollar dips being gold spikes) crossing 350 Euro may have been the moment..

As anyone who has followed some of my posts knows I have been long gold and mining for 18 months or so.. My spring calls on this board were 500 USD gold this year and 70 USD oil..

About 2 months ago I made probably the biggest bets of my life on gold (mostly highly leveraged mining shares with little forward sales) precious metals and especially silver.. Performing to the tune of a mil baht a week for the last 2 months (sorry if I sound like gloating but more than a few members knocked those bets.. Harmy, you out there??).. Anyhoo.. My 2006 bet is we have a higher than 50% chance of 800+ USD gold.. I am looking for 10.80+ silver..

The chinese are buying (on mass), the indians are buying, central bankers are divesting of fiat money.. Everything is going just to the script..

[Maigo6]

Thailand consumption I suspect has a minimal impact on International demand for gold.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Jeddah, i think the Thai guy was talking about LOCAL buyers or sellers, not international, he was talking of local trends, not international market prices!

He just does not want to give predictions based on possible maket fluctuations in the world prices. Put it this way, if he gave a prediction, and some poor soul lost 10 Million baht, then he would have some explaining to do.

You know something, 18 months ago, a Thai woman told me to invest in gold, I ignored this advice and kept my money in the bank ( Thai Bank! ), I feel like a dumb farang now.

[Maigo6]

And no, it was not a request to invest in the ammount of gold she could hang round her neck!

[basjke]

Anyone who has little knowledge about investment knew longtime already gold prices gonna go through the roof.As also do the prices of most other commodities.In my opinion all this is only the result of speculation since at the moment there seems to be a shortage for every basic material in this world which cant be real.Maybe water is the next thing to invest in as those prices haven't exploded yet and there is a clean water shortage in a lot of places in the world.

[risky11]

Anyone who has little knowledge about investment knew longtime already gold prices gonna go through the roof.As also do the prices of most other commodities.In my opinion all this is only the result of speculation since at the moment there seems to be a shortage for every basic material in this world which cant be real.Maybe water is the next thing to invest in as those prices haven't exploded yet and there is a clean water shortage in a lot of places in the world.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yeah, what's up with that? I live in Florida and was just reading about how the US govt is addicted to foreign money. "At our current rate or trade and budget deficits, foreigners need to purchase $2 billion in dollar-denominated assets EACH DAY just to keep the dollar stable" says Axel Merk, who manages $60 million at Merk Investments and runs the Merk Hard Currency Fund.

I want to find out how I can invest my dollars in Euro-denominated funds. Then bet on commodities and real estate. What a crazy world we live in; it's scary!

[srisatch]

The price has reached $800 before

So the wife is already right! and richer. And Chinese New Year and a zillion Indian weddings to come

Gold mining is a tough business-expensive, rigs difficult to find, operators scarce

Prices fixed?? Ha Ha! Tried selling any gold recently?..lucky if you can get 8-9000Baht

[Martin]

We had a discussion of whether to buy gold, back in June, on this website (but it may have been on the forum for discussion of investment).

The price then was 420 to 430. That the price now is 540 is 'writing on the wall'.

Such a big rise in this particular major commodity, (in the absence of 'little people' panic, like there was when Afghanistan was invaded and gold 'went through the roof'), must mean that the really big investors have been buying because they are afraid that there is an explosion of inflation on the way.

And that means that they fear its trigger (maybe the dollar tanking??) is on the way.

Not a time to be caught with a load of indebtedness, methinks.

[warriors]

lucky I got my gold 3 years ago when it was at $250. I was in the money lending game and got thai gold trikets as guarantees. Then they stopped paying after say average 6 months I thought shit. Now I am smiling but no longer in the leading game. I learned leave that to the experts, but my gold is glittering now.

[ilyushin]

Yeah, like most poor Thais care about the price of gold.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

They do as it is a low level, non complicated investment that they can make and has always been a type of insurance policy. Easy to OTC cash in too.

Edited December 13, 2005 by ilyushin

[awarrumbungle]

Is gold cheaper here than in other countries?

[LivinLOS]

The price has reached $800 before

So the wife is already right! and richer. And Chinese New Year and a zillion Indian weddings to come

Gold mining is a tough business-expensive, rigs difficult to find, operators scarce

Prices fixed?? Ha Ha! Tried selling any gold recently?..lucky if you can get 8-9000Baht

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

My buddy sold 5 baht of gold recently.. The days spot price was 9600 at the time and IIRC he got 9100.. Seemed easy..

Of course thats jewelwery gold and not investment bullion

[LivinLOS]

Is gold cheaper here than in other countries?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

If it was I would buy it by the tonne and sell it elsewhere..

Gold is a global commodity with a value equal everywhere (unless taxed on purchase)..