Gold loses its lustre as industry fears price will stay flat or fall
MOST gold miners expect the metal price to fall or stay the same in the next year, as confidence in the sector continues to plummet.
Forty-seven per cent of gold producers surveyed by PwC expect the price to increase over the next 12 months, compared to 88 per cent a year ago. Seven per cent forecast the price of gold to decrease and 46 per cent expect it to stay the same.
Gold started trading just below $1,700 (£1,040) per ounce this year, but slowed growth in China, the world’s largest importer of commodities, dragged the price down to just $1,200 this summer before bouncing slightly to $1,300.
“China’s economic growth is expected to remain strong as it executes its reform agenda – providing hope for mining companies that continue to sell their commodities to the world’s second largest economy,” said Jason Burkitt, UK mining leader at PwC.
“The gradual economic recovery in the US should help increase long-term demand for commodities.”