Gold and silver have done little moving in the early parts of Wednesday, though the moving they have done thus far has been negative. There are some US economic reports due out today, though they have not done too much in the way of altering precious metals’ spot values. An incident between the US and China in the East China Sea has prompted some mild safe-haven demand for gold and silver, though we must reiterate the minor nature of the incident and subsequent safe-haven demand increase.
Many American investors are out of the office today as they prepare to celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday tomorrow.
Economic Data, East China Sea Dispute
In viewing the healthy offering of US economic data today, it was clear that the reports were not overly positive nor overly negative. In the end, however, the value of the US Dollar improved a bit in the wake of today’s economic data. The minor movement posted by metals and the Dollar can mostly be attributed to a quieter marketplace as a whole today. With today being one of the biggest travel days of the year in the US, it is no surprise that trading was at a minimum.
In other news, a disputed grouping of islands in the East China Sea became the center of more controversy today after it was reported that US military aircraft flew over them. Though these islands are uninhabited, their ownership is a topic of major controversy. In recent months, both China and Japan have come out saying these islands are theirs and neither one is willing to entertain any type of discussion about ownership. Because this is such a touchy topic for both the Chinese and Japanese governments, the US flying planes over the islands did not make the situation any better. Instead, many experts are viewing this move as provocative in nature and are eagerly awaiting China’s response on the matter.
Though this incident will probably blow over and be forgotten about in a week’s time, it was still newsworthy enough to prompt a marginal increase in safe-haven demand for precious metals. For many, however, this is just another instance where the US military is sticking its nose in a situation it does not belong in and is more annoying than anything else.