Huffington Post Business reports that most commodity prices rose Tuesday on hopes that Greece will be able to avoid a default on its debt.
The perfect storm has hit platinum in the wake of the Japanese earthquake and geopolitical events in the Middle East and North Africa regions. The impact of these events are specific to the platinum market in one regard: automotive demand. Nearly 40 percent of total platinum demand comes from the auto industry.
Reuters reports a rise in platinum prices as the precious metal was bid at $1,741.75 an ounce from $1,732.00 today.
Bloomberg reports on South African companies whose stock is likely to rise or fall soon.
Forbes suggests that the current recovery is a good time to invest in items that will appreciate over time like platinum.
Platinum prices hovered around US$1,530 per ounce again Monday. Stuck between US$1,500 and US$1,600 since mid-May, analysts are predicting demand for platinum – used in everything from cars, to computers and cell phones – could be heating up and prices could be on the rise.
Monday’s equity market rally switched precious metals to a negative track. As equities rose, the precious metals were less enticing to investors, and this was reflected in their value. Platinum for April delivery ended the session in New York down $14.20 to $1,049.40 per troy ounce.
Platinum showed extreme volatility in 2008, rising to an all-time high of $2,290 an ounce in March on the back of a power shortage in major producer South Africa, before falling to a five-year low of $732.50 in October.
Platinum has shed 45 per cent of its value in just nine months. Last Friday the spot price of platinum hit a low of $812.75 per oz. Now, for this first time in 12 years gold has surpassed platinum in value.
Platinum plunged to a new low on Tuesday, dropping below $1000 an ounce for the first time since 2006. Platinum dropped $96.00, or 8.8%, to hit $994 on the London Metal Exchange. At its current price platinum is down 57% from its record high of $2301.50 hit on March 4th.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011