After dipping briefly to a 2½-week low of $1,180 per troy ounce yesterday, the gold price is trading around $10 higher again this morning. It thus remains below the psychologically important $1,200 per troy ounce mark, however. China imported surprisingly little gold from Hong Kong in April, imports declining on a net basis by 22% year-on-year to 52.2 tons, according to data from the Census and Statistics Department of the Hong Kong government. Net imports were thus down for already the third consecutive month, and were also at their lowest level since August 2014. China imported 262.3 tons of gold from the former British Crown Colony in the first four months of the year, which is 26% less than in the same period last year. In other words, the weak Chinese gold demand seen in the first quarter has spilled over into the second quarter. No doubt it was the sharply rising local equity markets in particular that has made gold appear less attractive in the eyes of the Chinese. The Chinese equity market will not continue to surge in the coming months – the CSI 300 has gained by nearly 40% since the beginning of the year – and expect gold to be in greater demand again during the course of the year, expects Commerzbank.
The material has been provided by InstaForex Company – www.instaforex.com