Shanghai gold exchange benchmark contract volume jumps to a record after a week-long break. The volume for bullion exceeded 22,000 kilograms. Chinese investors returned to the market after being closed for the Lunar New Year holiday to a slump in gold prices, which provided great incentive for buying.
By Bloomberg News
Feb 18, 2013 2:06 AM MT
Bloomberg
Gold volumes for the benchmark cash contract on the Shanghai Gold Exchange climbed to a record today, as the market re-opened after a weeklong break and lower prices lured buyers.
The volume for bullion of 99.99 percent purity exceeded 22,000 kilograms (22 metric tons), according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Prices dropped 2.8 percent to 327.25 yuan a gram ($1,630.29 an ounce) as of 5:04 p.m. Singapore time. Markets were closed last week for the Lunar New Year holiday.
“Chinese investors returned to the market today after the holiday, and the slump in gold prices in the past week provided great incentive for buying as many Chinese are still holding a bullish outlook on gold,” Qu Mingyu, a trader at Bank of China Ltd., the nation’s fourth-largest lender by assets, said by phone from Shanghai today.
Spot gold tumbled 3.4 percent last week, the worst such showing since May, as improving data from the U.S. reduced the appeal of haven assets. The metal today rebounded as much as 0.6 percent to $1,618.90 an ounce and last traded at $1,615.40.
--Glenys Sim and Feiwen Rong. Editors: Ovais Subhani,
To contact Bloomberg News staff for this story: Glenys Sim in Singapore at gsim4@bloomberg.net; Feiwen Rong in Beijing at frong2@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: James Poole at jpoole4@bloomberg.net; Brett Miller at bmiller30@bloomberg.net
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