subject: Gold Prices Likely to Continue Upward Climb [print this page] Gold Prices Likely to Continue Upward Climb
In terms of investing, gold can certainly be viewed as the most appealing commodity. Considering gold prices have soared nearly 200% in the past five years, for some it's not question of "if" but "when" gold will break historic price next.
Over the past few years, a weakened dollar, inflation, and poor economic reports from the United States and other countries have served as catalysts for gold prices soaring to historic highs. Although many have strongly believed that gold and the dollar have an inverse relationship, the world is becoming increasingly aware of the United States' public debt, as well as Europe's economy, which is also slowly recovering.
Many continue to see gold as a recessionary investment, and the commodity has continuously shattered record prices, reaching an all-time high of more than $1258 an ounce in mid-June. Some, like Jason Simpkins of MoneyMorning.com, suggest gold prices could move as high as $2,000 an ounce, while analysts at Bank of America Merrill Lynch see a, perhaps, more realistic $1,500 an ounce in 2011. Even in a less bullish case, those estimates could mean a further surge of more than 20% in gold prices in the next twelve months.??
While gold prices have continued climbing, based on concerns over a weakening dollar, but economic uncertainty has also effected people's confidence in the euro, which could mean even more investors looking to gold as a core holding, further increasing the commodity's price. During the slower summer months, gold continued to see gains as investors around the world continuously seek safe-haven investments. Perhaps, one of many reasons gold contracts for December delivery were approaching $1240 an ounce, not far off from record prices late in the second quarter.
As of mid-August, gold prices settled above $1230 an ounce for the first time in more than six weeks, but have been somewhat kept at bay due to low volume typically accompanying the tail-end of summer. With jobless claims rising unexpectedly to the highest number seen in the past three quarters, many anticipate gold to see further gains as volume picks up in September.
