(Source:GoldAlert.Com)
Precious metals forecasters believe that gold will remain north of $1,500 for the balance of 2011, fueled by sovereign debt concerns in Europe and the weak economic recovery in the U.S.
According to the bi-annual Reuters poll of precious metals price forecasts, more than half of the 52 respondents expect the yellow metal to average above $1,500 this year. This is a significant change from the previous poll in January, when only 20% of respondents answered that way.
The poll returned a median forecast of $1,510 per ounce, up from $1,453 in January.
As for 2012, the median forecast was $1,575 per ounce, compared to $1,425 in the prior poll. As is clear from the data, not only do the respondents see gold remaining higher through year-end, but more importantly they no longer expect the yellow metal to decline next year.
Gold futures reached an all-time high record of $1,610.70 per ounce this past Tuesday.
Peter Buchanan, a Toronto-based commodities analyst at CIBC World Markets, commented that ”Even in the likely event Congress agrees to a debt ceiling rise, recent uncertainties are likely to reinforce central banks’ ongoing efforts to diversify from the dollar into gold and other assets.”
As for silver, respondents were still bullish, but less so. The median 2011 forecast was $36.60, compared to $30.00 in January. In 2012, silver is expected to average $36.25, versus $28.00 in January. Silver reached a 31-year high of $49.82 per ounce on April 25 of this year.
Koichiro Kamei, managing director at financial research firm Market Strategy Institute in Tokyo, commented that “Silver may be pulled higher, accompanying gold, but as the metal has surged and slumped in a short interval in 2011, it may take a while for the market to recover.”
While the poll’s results may be encouraging for investors, they are a cautionary sign from a contrarian perspective, in a similar manner to that of the sentiment data that GoldAlert frequently discusses.
source link:http://www.goldalert.com/2011/07/forecasters-bullish-on-gold-into-next-year/
