Exchange traded funds tracking gold prices rose Tuesday as the metal reclaimed $1,800 an ounce and Italian bond yields climbed after Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi failed to gather a majority backing in parliament on the budget.
ETFS Physical Swiss Gold Shares (NYSEArca: SGOL) was fractionally higher on speculation Berlusconi may face a confidence vote.
Italian bond yields are trading near 7%, a level that could mark the point where the country is unable to afford to borrow in the public markets, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Separately, China’s gold imports from Hong Kong rose 30% in September from the year-ago period.
Mainland China bought 57 metric tons from Hong Kong in September, up from 43.7 tons in August, Bloomberg reported.
The imports probably are “a monthly record” as the country imported more than 200 tons in 2010, said Albert Cheng, managing director at the World Gold Council, in the report.
“The pullback in prices during September triggered buying interest,” Cheng told Bloomberg. “Chinese buyers are still looking for ways to diversify their portfolio and hedge against the macro uncertainties.”
The gold ETF is up about 7% over the past month.
ETFS Physical Swiss Gold Shares
