If ECB Does Not Print Money, Gold May Fall to $1,700
By: Don't be surprised if gold falls to $1,700, according to some traders.
When it comes to what markets wanted to hear from the European Central Bank it was all about money printing.
Without that, gold prices will fall along with other risk assets (oil, copper) and, of course, the euro, traders say.
The quick reversal Thursday from optimism to some pessimism in the gold market came after ECB President Mario Draghi's press conference, the ECB rate announcements and news that U.S. jobless claims fell to the lowest level since February, says RBC Capital Markets precious metals analyst George Gero. "All of which coming at end of the year meant some more cautionary sellers."
Draghi, at the briefing, said his comments were misinterpreted last week, when markets took him to say the ECB would be willing to step up after European leaders move to tighten fiscal integration. He also threw cold water on the market's hopes that the ECB would use more of its firepower to buy European bonds.
Draghi said that the ECB's unorthodox moves were temporary, and that its sovereign bond purchases in the secondary markets are done to improve the transmission of monetary policy and are "not infinite."
