Gold traded strongly in Europe after hitting 25-year highs in Asian trading hours yesterday, apparently viewing the US dollar's recovery as a short-term response to higher interest rates.
Persistent concerns about Iran's nuclear ambitions also lifted the metal, which is viewed as a hedge against currency weakness, inflation and geopolitical instability.
The June gold contract rose as high as US$714.90 an ounce in Asian electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange before falling back to US$712.30 in afternoon European trading -- still well above its close on Wednesday of US$705.70 an ounce (US$24.88 a gram).
In London, spot gold was trading at US$708.40 at midday, an increase from US$701 late on Wednesday.
The gains came despite the US dollar's modest recovery against other major currencies after the US Federal Reserve lifted interest rates to 5 percent and left the door open for further hikes.
Gold investors focused instead on the inflationary fears expressed in the Fed's statement and on the possible inflationary impact of surging prices of crude oil prices and industrial metals, traders and analysts said.
At the same time, speculation that China and other Asian countries may be turning to gold as a way to reduce their foreign reserve holdings -- mostly denominated in US dollars -- on a weakening greenback is also spurring investor sentiment, participants said.
The all-time record for gold was set in January 1980 when it hit US$875 an ounce in a huge day-and-a-half surge. But it quickly fell back under US$700.
Anna Bhobho, a 31-year-old housewife from rural Zimbabwe, was once a silent observer in her home, excluded from financial and family decisionmaking in the deeply patriarchal society. Today, she is a driver of change in her village, thanks to an electric tricycle she owns. In many parts of rural sub-Saharan Africa, women have long been excluded from mainstream economic activities such as operating public transportation. However, three-wheelers powered by green energy are reversing that trend, offering financial opportunities and a newfound sense of importance. “My husband now looks up to me to take care of a large chunk of expenses,
SECTOR LEADER: TSMC can increase capacity by as much as 20 percent or more in the advanced node part of the foundry market by 2030, an analyst said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is expected to lead its peers in the advanced 2-nanometer process technology, despite competition from Samsung Electronics Co and Intel Corp, TrendForce Corp analyst Joanne Chiao (喬安) said. TSMC’s sophisticated products and its large production scale are expected to allow the company to continue dominating the global 2-nanometer process market this year, Chiao said. The world’s largest contract chipmaker is scheduled to begin mass production of chips made on the 2-nanometer process in its Hsinchu fab in the second half of this year. It would also hold a ceremony on Monday next week to
TECH CLUSTER: The US company’s new office is in the Shalun Smart Green Energy Science City, a new AI industry base and cybersecurity hub in southern Taiwan US chip designer Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) yesterday launched an office in Tainan’s Gueiren District (歸仁), marking a significant milestone in the development of southern Taiwan’s artificial intelligence (AI) industry, the Tainan City Government said in a statement. AMD Taiwan general manager Vincent Chern (陳民皓) presided over the opening ceremony for the company’s new office at the Shalun Smart Green Energy Science City (沙崙智慧綠能科學城), a new AI industry base and cybersecurity hub in southern Taiwan. Facilities in the new office include an information processing center, and a research and development (R&D) center, the Tainan Economic Development Bureau said. The Ministry
State-run CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) yesterday signed a letter of intent with Alaska Gasline Development Corp (AGDC), expressing an interest to buy liquefied natural gas (LNG) and invest in the latter’s Alaska LNG project, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a statement. Under the agreement, CPC is to participate in the project’s upstream gas investment to secure stable energy resources for Taiwan, the ministry said. The Alaska LNG project is jointly promoted by AGDC and major developer Glenfarne Group LLC, as Alaska plans to export up to 20 million tonnes of LNG annually from 2031. It involves constructing an 1,290km
RSS