Gold ETFs Down 6% in May on Dollar Surge
May 31st 2012 at 12:32pm by John Spence
Gold exchange traded funds are on track for a loss of more than 6% this month as precious metals and equities have been hurt by a resurgent U.S. dollar.
Gold is in its longest monthly slump since 2000, according to Bloomberg.
“Gold is behaving like a classic commodity and declining along with the pack,” Adam Klopfenstein, a market strategist at Archer Financial Services, said in the report.
“Though our long-term expectations for the gold price remain very positive, we believe there may still be downside risks if the U.S. dollar continues to remain strong,” added Commerzbank analyst Daniel Briesemann.
The largest gold ETF, SPDR Gold Shares (NYSEArca: GLD), was on track for a loss of 6.3% for May in afternoon trading Thursday.
Gold and silver ETFs fell into negative territory for 2012 on Wednesday morning, although the funds have rebounded somewhat since then. [Gold, Silver ETFs See Red for Year]
The dollar has rallied in May on speculation Greece may leave the euro, while government bond yields in some troubled European nations are creeping higher again.
For now, investors are seeking safety in the greenback and U.S. Treasuries, rather than gold.
Bullion is set to end May down for the fourth straight month. Bullion holdings in gold exchange traded products are poised for a third monthly decline, according to Bloomberg data.
Gold posted its worst May performance in three decades, Reuters reported.
“Investors don’t have the same strategic approach to gold as before,” said UBS analysts in the article. “Instead of taking a multi-week or multi-month view, much of the exposure to gold has been on an intra-day bias of late. The market is too highly correlated with risk for many participants’ liking.”
SPDR Gold Shares
Full disclosure: Tom Lydon’s clients own GLD.
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