Buying gold in July or August only failed to pay once by
year's-end since this bull market began...
SO WE GOT an abrupt switch in the short-Euro, long-gold trade last
week.
Widely recommended as it continued to win, the position delivered 22% gains
between end-March and end-June, and it looked closely held as Q2 finished,
no doubt so funds could highlight it in their quarterly client reports.
Since July 1st, in contrast, a lot of recent inflows to gold are going
to be asking whether the summer's drop-to-date is just a dip, a seasonal lull,
or the beginning of the end for gold's 10-year bull market.
We'd split the difference, and see what's behind that curtain in the middle.
Yes, the summer lull has arrived later than usual. Since 1968, only 2005
saw June set a new high for the year (daily basis; the chart above tracks month-end
prices).
And yes, there's reason to doubt one key driver of gold's seasonal cycle -
Indian consumer demand. Its own seasonal shape - led by weddings, festivals
and the intervening pre-harvest lull - must have less impact on global prices
as Kerala's farmers weigh ever-higher Rupee prices per 10 grams.
But for Dollar investors, since this bull market began a decade ago, buying
gold in July or August has only failed once to deliver a gain by year's-end.
The 2008 low came at end-Oct. The rest of the time, Sept. worked like a starting
gun for strong gains in gold.
Does the second-half of 2010 have to play out to script? Of course not.
But even if the bull market is over (which looks unlikely what with global
interest rates at zero, let alone with fresh monetary mayhem ahead), even a
bear-market fillip would give July's buyers the chance to get out for a profit
by the end of September.
Formerly City correspondent for The Daily Reckoning in London and head of
editorial at the UK's leading financial advisory for private investors, Adrian
Ash is the head of research at BullionVault,
where you can buy gold today vaulted
in Zurich on $3 spreads and 0.8% dealing fees.
About BullionVault
BullionVault is the secure, low-cost
gold and silver exchange for private investors. It enables you to buy and sell
professional-grade bullion at live prices online, storing your physical property
in market-accredited, non-bank vaults in London, New York and Zurich.
By February 2011, less than six years after launch, more than 21,000 people
from 97 countries used BullionVault,
owning well over 21 tonnes of physical gold (US$940m) and 140 tonnes of physical
silver (US$129m) as their outright property. There is no minimum investment
and users can deal as little as one gram at a time. Each user's unique holding
is proven, each day, by the public reconciliation of client property with formal
bullion-market bar lists.
BullionVault is a full member of
professional trade body the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA). Its innovative
online platform was recognized in 2009 by the UK's prestigious Queen's Awards
for Enterprise. In June 2010, the gold industry's key market-development body
the World Gold Council (www.gold.org) joined
with the internet and technology fund Augmentum Capital, which is backed by
the London listed Rothschild Investment Trust (RIT Capital Partners), in making
an $18.8 million (£12.5m) investment in the business.
Please Note: This article is to inform your thinking, not lead it.
Only you can decide the best place for your money, and any decision you make
will put your money at risk. Information or data included here may have already
been overtaken by events - and must be verified elsewhere - should you choose
to act on it.
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