Gold is headed for a third weekly gain after turbulent equity markets sent investors hunting for haven assets amid global growth concerns. Futures breached $1,300 an ounce in New York and spot gold flirted with the level in early London trading, before dropping back as stocks in Europe and Asia recovered some of their losses ahead of fresh trade negotiations between the U.S. and China next week.
Asia
India Growth Forecast Cut by Fitch Amid RBI-Government Spat
Economic growth may become a casualty of the tug-of-war between India’s government and its central bank.
India’s Sensex Declines Ahead of Central Bank’s Rate Review
The S&P BSE Sensex declined 0.6 percent, the most in two weeks, to 35,907.31 as of 9:53 a.m. in Mumbai, while the NSE Nifty 50 Index slipped 0.7 percent. Markets across Asia tumbled following the biggest slide on Wall Street since mid-October.
Central Banks to Increase Gold Buying for First Time Since 2013
Central banks are set to increase their purchases of gold in 2018 for the first time in five years as eastern European and Asian countries seek to diversify their reserves.
Popularity of India Stocks Over Past Decade Adds to Outflow Risk
Gold Silver Reports (GSR) – Monsoon season may be over, but India’s investors are at risk from a different kind of flood. — Indian stocks have been the biggest emerging-Asian beneficiaries of the wave of liquidity that swept over world markets in the wake of the global financial crisis, That may also make them the most vulnerable, now that the waters are receding.
Bears Embrace Asia as Stock Benchmark Sinks 20% From Record High
Asia’s main equity gauge is poised to succumb, joining four major regional benchmark indexes into bear-market territory. the MSCI Asia Pacific Index slipped 0.5 percent to 149.68 as of 10:10 a.m. in Hong Kong, taking its slump from a Jan. 26 peak to 20 percent.
Crude Oil Price Rally Hits Asia Where It Hurts
Rising oil prices are pushing up prices for fuels in Asia, and this is coming at a bad time; many Asian currencies are depreciating as economic growth falters.