Tuesday, May 02, 2006

Gold: A Running Commentary

The situation in Iran continues to aid in speculation over what will happen in the commodities market. Gold is safe and in a time when Bloomberg reports, "Yesterday, Iran asked the United Nations to take urgent action against the U.S. for what it describes as a threat to attack its nuclear facilities. "

Since January, uncertainty has been rising along with the price of the metal, valued around the wrold for various purposes. Overall, however, gold is the old standby during moments of political unreset.

According to GlobalSecurity.org, "From the end of World War II through 1983, domestic mine production of gold did not exceed 2 million ounces annually. Since 1985, annual production has risen by 1 million to 1.5 million ounces every year. By the end of 1989, the cumulative output from deposits in the United States since 1792 reached 363 million ounces. "

The IMF has stated that their current gold holdings, "are valued on its balance sheet at SDR 5.9 billion (about $9 billion) on the basis of historical cost. As of March 31, 2006, the IMF's holdings amounted to $60 billion (at then current market prices). "

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