Gold Seeker Closing Report: Gold and Silver End Mixed

The Metals:

Gold rose $10.40 to $1613.10 in Asia before it fell back to $1593.30 in London, but it then rose to as high as $1618.30 in early afternoon New York trade and ended with a gain of 0.56%. Silver climbed to $29.712 in Asia before it fell back to $28.916 in London and then bounced back higher in New York, but it still ended with a loss of 1.62%.

Euro gold rose to about €1245, platinum lost $12 to $1415, and copper dropped 10 cents to about $3.43.

Gold and silver equities waffled near unchanged and mixed.

What would it take to burst gold’s price? MarketWatch

Gold Sales to India Were Double Average Yesterday, UBS Says Bloomberg

The Economy:

'True Revolution' Ahead for US Fiscal Future: Greenspan Yahoo

Mortgage demand fell at year-end, purchases sag Reuters

Retail Estimate for December Raised, Discounts Heavy Bloomberg

Tomorrow at 8:15 brings ADP Employment for December expected at 180,000.At 8:30 are Initial Jobless Claims for 12/31 expected at 375,000 and at 10AM is the ISM Services report for December expected at 53.0.

The Markets:

Charts Courtesy of http://finance.yahoo.com/

Oil rose “after the European Union reached a preliminary agreement to ban imports of Iranian crude.”

The U.S. dollar index rose as the euro fell after Italian bank UniCredit raised €7.5 billion and diluted its shares by 200% in a rights offering that was priced at a 70% discount to its closing price.

“The aim of UniCredit's rights issue — shareholders have been asked to buy two new shares for every one they hold — is to help the bank shore up its capital reserves, in line with European regulatory demands. Last month, industry regulator, the European Banking Authority, said the bank needed to raise around €8 billion.

Earlier in the day, UniCredit shares were briefly suspended after the cash call was priced at a 69 percent discount to Tuesday's close, much lower than most predictions. So far, only 24 percent of the shares on offer have been taken.

The discount was bigger than those that have been offered by UniCredit's peers recently and knocked sentiment in Europe's banking sector as a whole, notably of Germany's Commerzbank AG, which has been asked to raise €5.3 billion ($6.9 billion) by the European Banking Authority. Its share price fell 4 percent.”

Treasuries fell as traders positioned themselves for jobs data due out over the next two days.

The Dow, Nasdaq, and S&P waffled near unchanged as hopes for better than expected jobs data were offset by worries over Europe and Iran.

Among the big names making news in the market today were UniCredit, MF Global and Goldman Sachs, and Yahoo.

The Commentary:

“Dear Extended Family,

The incoming negativity on gold last week reached epic levels. Friends of mine and gold for more than 40 years were looking for a towel to throw into the gold ring. When fear overtakes your intellect and you call, it is like molten magma spewing out of the phone or email.

If I dared to remind the caller that nothing has changed except the algorithms and then only for the short period of time I made the caller angry. I will admit anger is better than total depression but there is no necessity for either.

The advent of splinter parties to challenge the staid old Democrats and Republicans has put Washington into a total freeze frame. There is no mandate for anything, but don’t rock the boat. All that can get done there is nothing whatsoever.

All the “can kicking” hopes for a strong economic recovery to heal the can bouncing damage have not and will not materialize. The Fed will not let the euro fail. Already the US Fed has provided the swap lines (loan mechanisms) to the ECB (a beard) to loan the Euro banks the liquidity they lost when the Greek bonds were cut 50% (declared not a default by the Board of Appointed Wizards on CDSs from the banks who wrote the useless bond insurance who are the official shot callers on the default word).

You will never hear any of the "D" words, be that default or deflation. You will hear "rescheduling" which is a default whereby the credit default swap does not have to function so the worthless insurance is camouflaged.

Arab spring is turning out to be the disaster we knew it was. Remember all the cheering on financial TV as Egypt imploded? Spontaneous outbreaks of democracy were simply a really dumb reaction.

Some people can only be ruled by strongmen. It was good the strongmen were all on the payroll of the West. The West fired the strongmen into holes in the ground with candy bars, and flood pipes with unused gold .45cal pistols. Now the true believers are taking over. Arab Spring will be seen as the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood as the most influential replacement.

Energy is in as much trouble from the Arab Spring as the Strait of Hormuz is from Iran. Yes, the Wunderkinds took advantage of the gold fear circumstances, but in terms of gold related items have overstated their accomplishments.

When you bully something to go your way you must not assume you are a genius and called the direction. You made it happen, and it will gobble you up the minute you are out of aces. Those gold shares and gold bullion holders that maintained reason over emotion are committed people that no squirt is going to force out of their positions to benefit worthless puts and large new very low priced shorts. At times old fashioned retail can have more staying power than hedge funds.

Please make note:

Gold will bounce off $2100 and react. Try to keep an even course as Alf is right. Gold has a better chance of seeing $4500 than $1400.

Throw away your razor blade kits provided by famous but mercurial gold commentators who have no mindset whatsoever other than to sell subscriptions or seminars.

Sincerely,”- Jim Sinclair, JSMineset.com

GATA Posts:

Lars Schall: An exercise in futility -- Thank you for contacting the New York Fed

The Statistics:

Activity from: 1/03/2012

Global Gold ETF Holdings

[WGC Sponsored ETF’s]

Note: No change in Total Tonnes from yesterday’s data.

COMEX Gold Trust (IAU) Total Tonnes in Trust: 171.03: No change from yesterday’s data.

Silver Trust (SLV) Total Tonnes in Trust: 9,605.79: No change from yesterday’s data.

The Miners:

Lake Shore’s (LSG) filed Technical Report, Solitario’s (XPL) drill results, Entree’s (EGI) closed over-allotment option, US Gold’s (UXG) construction and exploration update, Seabridge’s (SA) drill results, First Majestic’s (AG) new Chief Information Officer, and Bear Creek’s (BCM.V) new Director of Investor Relations and filed 43-101 report were among big stories in the gold and silver mining industry making headlines today.

WINNERS

LOSERS

Winners & Losers tracks NYSE and AMEX listed gold and silver mining stocks that trade over $1.

Please see Yahoo’s Mining/Metals News Wire for all of today’s mining news.

- Chris Mullen, Gold Seeker Report

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Additional Resources for today’s Gold Seeker Report can be found:

• http://www.capitalupdates.com
• http://www.goldseek.com
• http://www.silverseek.com
• http://www.goldreview.com

©Gold Seeker 2012

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