STOCK MARKET WATCH -- Monday, 8 September 2014

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31. Gold Bulls Retreat as $1.6 Billion Erased From ETPs: Commodities

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-09-07/gold-bulls-retreat-as-1-6-billion-erased-from-etps-commodities.html

Money managers trimmed bullish gold wagers for a third week, mirroring the retreat in prices that helped erase $1.6 billion from the value of bullion funds.

The net-long position in futures and options is at its lowest in 11 weeks after speculators added the most short bets in three months, U.S. government data show. Investors sold 13.1 metric tons of gold held through exchange-traded products last week, the most since April, as prices fell 1.6 percent.

Open interest in New York futures and options is near its lowest in five years as gains in the U.S. economy, dollar and equities curb investor demand. Prices dropped last week after Ukraine’s government agreed on a cease-fire with pro-Russian separatists and the dollar appreciated to its highest in more than a year against the euro as the European Central Bank cut interest rates.

“The concern and fear we had in the marketplace a few weeks ago has subsided,” Brian Hicks, a fund manager who helps oversee $350 million at U.S. Global Investors in San Antonio, said Sept. 5. “Europe’s going to need to continue to provide stimulus, whereas here in the U.S., our central bank is going to be pulling back the reins. Those two trends will continue to push the dollar higher and be a headwind for gold.”