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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;SilverSurfer, post: 816389, member: 21603&quot;]From Jon Nadler&#039;s commentary.</p><p><br /></p><p>&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; <b>“The IMF news is disturbing for two reasons”, </b>said&nbsp; Matthias Detremmerie, the founder of Belgium’s <b><a href="http://www.goldessential.com/ge" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://www.goldessential.com/ge" rel="nofollow">Goldessential.com</a>. “First of all, as no one seems eager to buy more of the IMF gold. After the 200 tonnes purchase by the Indian Reserve Bank in 2009, everyone touted China as a big potential candidate to soak up the rest. It seemed almost as a sure thing that the gold would be sold back-to-back. The ‘revelation’ that no central banks are interested seems to question the investment case for gold. This was one of the main reasons why gold was boosted to over $1,100 an ounce in the first place”. </b></p><p><br /></p><p>&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; Mr. Detremmerie added that<b>: </b><b>“Secondly, the sale implies more supply on the open market. Although the IMF has reiterated sales would be phased, and framed in the CBGA – which limits official sales to 400 metric tons per year -, to limit market disruptions, it will certainly push the CBGA sales this year – currently estimated at less than two metric tons since September&nbsp; - higher”.</b></p><p><b>........</b></p><p><b></b> The <a href="http://blogs.wsj.com/source/2010/02/18/imf-and-world-gold-council-left-with-egg-on-their-faces-as-gold-loses-its-shine/" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://blogs.wsj.com/source/2010/02/18/imf-and-world-gold-council-left-with-egg-on-their-faces-as-gold-loses-its-shine/" rel="nofollow">Wall&nbsp; Street Journal’s</a> Andrea Hotter sums up the surprise (which we warned might&nbsp; develop) and says that:</p><p><br /></p><p>&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; <b>“Sales of gold by the <a href="http://www.imf.org/external/index.htm" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://www.imf.org/external/index.htm" rel="nofollow">International&nbsp; Monetary Fund</a> have hit a serious stumbling block: There are no more official takers. It had all started so well. Having announced to great fanfare in September that the IMF’s Executive Board had approved gold sales totaling 403.3 metric tons — over 12 million troy ounces — there initially seemed to be no shortage of interest from the world’s central banks.</b></p><p><br /></p><p>&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; <b>&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; The <a href="http://www.rbi.org.in/home.aspx" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://www.rbi.org.in/home.aspx" rel="nofollow">Reserve Bank of India</a> bought 200 tons in&nbsp; October, followed in November by the <a href="http://bom.intnet.mu/" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://bom.intnet.mu/" rel="nofollow">Bank of Mauritius</a> with two tons and the <a href="http://www.cbsl.gov.lk/" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://www.cbsl.gov.lk/" rel="nofollow">Central Bank of Sri&nbsp; Lanka</a> with 10 tons. But there have been no further IMF gold sales since then. Gold prices are at near historical highs above $1,100/oz, around $50/oz higher than when India bought gold and at similar, to slightly lower levels than when Mauritius and Sri Lanka bought.</b></p><p><br /></p><p>&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; <b> And with 191.3 tons of gold left to sell, the IMF has been forced to eat humble pie. Late on Wednesday the IMF said: “Prior to any sales on the gold market, sales were first made exclusively to interested central banks, thus shifting gold within the official sector. Now the IMF will begin sales of the remaining gold on the market.”</b>[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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