Gold Seeker Closing Report: Gold and Silver Gain Again

	Close	Gain/Loss
Gold	$1124.05	+$1.20
Silver	$17.49	+$0.15
XAU	169.77	-0.09%
HUI	426.47	-0.06%
GDM	1275.26	+0.11%
JSE Gold	2230.41	+11.10
USD	79.71	+0.01
Euro	137.42	-0.28
Yen	110.76	-0.01
Oil	$82.93	+$1.23
10-Year	3.642%	-0.011
T-Bond	119.4375	+0.25
Dow	10733.67	+0.45%
Nasdaq	2389.09	+0.47%
S&P	1166.21	+0.58%

Gold rose as much as $10.45 to $1133.30 in London before it fell back to see a $1.62 loss at as low as $1121.23 in early afternoon New York trade, but it then bounced back higher in the last hour of trade and ended with a gain of 0.11%. Silver climbed 24 cents to $17.58 before it fell to see a $0.005 loss at $17.335 in early New York trade, but it then rallied back higher for most of the rest of trade and ended with a gain of 0.87%.

Euro gold remained at about €817, platinum gained $8 to $1631.50, and copper climbed another 5 cents to about $3.41.

Gold and silver equities rose to see over 1% gains by early afternoon, but they then fell back off into the close and ended near unchanged.

Report	For	Reading	Expected	Previous
PPI	Feb	-0.6%	-0.2%	1.4%
Core PPI	Feb	0.1%	0.1%	0.3%

Tomorrow at 8:30AM EST brings CPI for February expected at 0.1%, Core CPI expected at 0.1%, Initial Jobless Claims expected at 455,000, and the Current Account Balance for the fourth quarter expected at -$119.3 billion. At 10AM is the Leading Economic Indicators report for February expected at 0.1% and the Philadelphia Fed survey for March expected at 18.0.

Oil found decent gains while the U.S. dollar index waffled on either side of unchanged and ended barely higher as traders contemplated future moves by the world’s central banks.

Treasuries again rose along with the Dow, Nasdaq, and S&P on the fed’s continued pledge to keep rates low.

Among the big names making news in the market today were Morgan Stanley, GMAC, and AIG.

“Tuesday was another one of those days when a serious buyer [either new... or short covering] showed up. Since there were obviously few legitimate sellers around, buys stops were tripped and the price went vertical almost instantly... and if the bullion banks hadn't shown up as sellers of last resort, heaven only knows how high the price would have gone. I also call the bullion banks not-for-profit sellers, because they don't sell into these rallies to make money... they only do it to cap the price. That's what they're there for... nothing more, nothing less. That's why these '4 or less' bullion banks are sitting on these grotesque Comex short positions that have built up over the decades... because there are not enough legitimate sellers out there. They're all that's standing between us and monstrously higher prices in both silver and gold.

Tuesday's open interest in gold fell 11,617 contracts and, considering the quiet price action... Ted Butler said it was probably spreads being lifted... which makes perfect sense. The final volume in gold trading for Tuesday was reported as 178,496 contracts. Silver's o.i. fell by an insignificant 44 contracts in quiet trading. Volume was a smallish 30,904 contracts.

Open interest numbers for Tuesday's trading will be interesting, as they will give some indication as to whether yesterday's price surge was a new buyer going long... or someone covering a short position.

It was a quiet day on the delivery front yesterday. The CME Daily Notice showed that only 18 gold and 5 silver contracts are posted for delivery on Thursday. And, once again, there were no reported changes in GLD, SLV... or at the U.S. Mint. The Comex-approved depositories showed a decline of 312,866 ounces of silver on Monday.”– From Ed Steer’s Gold & Silver Daily, read the full report here.

The bulk of the weakness in the US Dollar today can be attributed to a short covering rally in the British Pound. That market is so heavily loaded with speculative short positions that any push higher through notable technical resistance levels will easily spark a bout of buying in this market which has been beaten to a bloody pulp since the beginning of the year. Early in the session it broke above the 20 day moving average which is a key level for many of the trend following funds.

With the Euro oscillating around the unchanged level and the Yen lower, it was strength in the Pound plus the commodity currencies that weighed on the Dollar. For the Dollar to drop sharply lower it will need the participation of the Euro however, as that currency has the largest weighting in the basket of currencies comprising the USDX.

Gold which had pushed higher and broken through the selling barrier erected by the bullion banks near $1,130, was unable to maintain its footing above that level without the Euro’s participation in the short covering Pound rally. As soon as Sterling faded, the Dollar inched back higher and gold moved lower further reinforcing the significance of the selling resistance in place above the market at $1,130. Once Sterling moved higher again, the Euro tagged along for a bit and gold moved back off its lows. For gold to break free of its stranglehold, bulls must dislodge the bullion banks from their perch at $1,130 and do it in convincing manner.

Beneath the market, gold is still seeing buying coming in near $1,100 and is maintaining its six week old uptrend of higher low and higher highs.

For now we remain mired in a trading range with neither side being able to gain a clear cut advantage.

I continue to watch copper for signs of an upside breakout. It has run into selling near the $3.50 level but is bouncing higher this morning after moving lower over the last week. With crude oil above the $80 mark and copper also higher, especially alongside of another surge higher in the US equity markets, it is safe to say that the “recovery” mindset is becoming more entrenched.

Yet, it is still odd that bonds will not move lower confirming this. Evidently that market is being influenced by the Fed’s announcement confirming the need for low interest rates for some time. All we need now is a resumption of the “Goldlilocks” word to describe the economy – not too hot, not too cold, but just right. For now, the equity gang sees the low interest rate environment as a reason to load the boat on equities.

Perhaps they were also reading the reports from Panasonic that their new 3-D TV’s sold out within their first week of release here in the US. If consumers are willing to plop down 3 G’s for a box out of which things come flying at them, then the thinking is that the consumer segment must be willing to spend more on lots of other toys and gadgets and that the economy is on the mend.

It is rather interesting to take a long term view of the S&P 500 chart on the monthly. It shows a double top near 1575 – 1585 with the former made in March 2000 at the height of the equity mania and the latter coming in October 2007. The same chart also shows a double bottom with the low near 767 made back in October 2002 followed by the spike low made early last year in March that pushed above the 750 level for the monthly close.

Basically we have the S&P in a decade long trading range between 750 and 1500. With the price action of the last two days, it has pushed just above the middle of this 750 point range and is on target technically speaking to make a run towards 1235 – 1240, or the 61.8% Fibonacci retracement level. That region is also the confluence of the downtrending 40 and 50 month moving averages which will make it a tough nut to crack should prices be able to work to that level. The 10 month moving average is trending firmly higher and just made a bullish upside crossover of the 20 month last month. If bulls can push this index above 1240, then they have a legitimate shot at moving it back towards the top of the decade long range near 1500.

Only if the bears can push the monthly close below 1025 can they hope to regain the initiative.

For now, it certainly appears that the low interest rate environment has succeeded in reflating the stock markets. The moment that changes, the bears will be in the driver’s seat once again especially with these rather rich valuations and rosy projections. It is way too early to be concerned about mortgage resets but later this year those will begin to occur and when they do, equity bulls had better hope that the labor markets have shown a decided improvement for the better.

I said all that to say this – the mining shares are riding some of the wave of buying that is pushing the broader equity markets higher. We could even see the hedge funds moving to ratio trades involving the shares on the long side and bullion on the short side. That remains unclear but in an environment in which equities are moving higher, it would be a logical trade. We will know their strategy by keeping tabs on the HUI/gold ratio.

Today has the HUI knocking on the door of last week’s high near and just above the 430 level. The index will need to move through this level for the majority of shares to kick off some sort of trending move higher and break the choppy range trade of late. The stronger the S&P, the better the chance they have of so doing.

The Dollar looks sloppy here but it has thus far failed to attract sufficient selling interest on its move lower this week to force out the speculative longs in a large way. Volume has simply dried up on the move below 7990 indicating a reluctance on the part of the trade to follow it down, at least for today. We have two more trading sessions left in the week and perhaps that will make the chart a bit more decipherable. A fall through support in the Dollar accompanied by good volume would do wonders to help gold break out of its box. That means all eyes are on the Euro. If the bulls can squeeze the Euro bears as they have done the Sterling bears, the Dollar is going to get whacked. That has been a tall order thus far.”- Dan Norcini, More at JSMineset.com

Note: Change in Total Tonnes from yesterday’s data: The LSE subtracted 0.88 tonnes.

COMEX Gold Trust (IAU) Total Tonnes in Trust: 77.57 - No change from yesterday’s data.

Silver Trust (SLV) Total Tonnes in Trust: 9,302.58 - No change from yesterday’s data.

Barrick’s (ABX) mine resumption plans, NovaGold’s (NG) reintroduction to the Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX Composite Index, Exeter’s (XRA) spin-out details, Gammon’s (GRS) class action certification comments, Great Basin’s (GBG) addition to the S&P/TSX Global Gold Index and the S&P/TSX Global Mining Index, Apollo Gold’s (AGT) fourth quarter and year end results, and Impact’s (IPT.V) drill results were among the big stories in the gold and silver mining industry making headlines today.

Winners & Losers tracks NYSE and AMEX listed gold and silver mining stocks that trade over $1.

Abington Resources Ltd.: Arizona Claims Staked/New Private Placement - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Alturas Announces Debt Settlement - More
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American Bonanza Files Copperstone Feasibility Study on SEDAR - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Dana Resources Sees Positive Reception on Chota Silver Mine - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Beaufield Stakes Schefferville Claims for Zinc, Iron, Gold and Completes Tortigny Drilling - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Minera Andes Welcomes Lawsuit by Hochschild Mining plc - More
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Barrick Tanzania gold mine to resume Friday - "African Barrick Gold (ABG) will resume operations at its Bulyanhulu mine in Tanzania on Friday following a fatal accident that halted all mining three days earlier, the company said in a statement." More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Niocan's Niobium Mine Project Reconfirms Positive Socio-Economic Impacts for All the Stakeholders of Oka and Quebec - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Adroit Closes $403,800 Private Placement - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

IMPACT SILVER INTERSECTS 1,139.7 g/t SILVER OVER 1.38 METERS AT AURORA 1 - "IMPACT Silver Corp. ("IMPACT") is pleased to announce the completion of the second phase drill program at the Aurora 1 Zone in the Mamatla Mineral District. Aurora 1 is located 17 kilometers southwest of IMPACT's operating silver mines and processing plant in the Royal Mines of Zacualpan Silver District." More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Premier Red Lake Drilling returns multiple high grade intercepts at new discovery area - More
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Global gold hedge book down to just 236 tonnes - "The latest Global Hedge Book survey from Société Générale, (compiled by GFMS Ltd, using the Brady TrinityTM trading and risk management software) shows that at the end of 2009 the global delta-adjusted hedge book stood at just 236 tonnes, a far cry from the 3,064 tonnes when it was at its peak in 2000. De-hedging in the fourth quarter was 125 tonnes, making up more than half the year's total of 246 tonnes. This means that net mine supply in 2009 was reduced by 9% last year, to 2,317 tonnes against production of 2,553 tonnes (GMFS figures)." More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Rio Alto Mining Limited Applies to Extend the Expiry Date of Outstanding Warrants - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Gold-Ore Announces Bjorkdal First Quarter Operational Results - More
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Northern Shield Enters into an Option Agreement on its Ni-Cu-PGE Wabassi Property; Drill-Crew and Rig Mobilized to Property for 2,300 metre Drill Program - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Aura Minerals Clarifies Inclusion to S&P/TSX Indices - More
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Eagle Hill Cuts 14.20 g/t Gold Over 52 Meters (3.42 g/t Cut) With Final Assays From Drill Hole EAG-10-196 at Windfall Lake - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Northern Lion Locates Positive Drill Data on Cyprus Copper-Gold Enriched VHMS Projects - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Ur-Energy Successfully Completes Delineation of Lost Creek Mine Unit #2 - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Mesa Uranium Expands the Green Energy Lithium Project - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Acadian Mining expands historical drill core sampling program at Fifteen Mile Stream gold property - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Fortress Intercepts 474.7 Metres of Continuous Copper and Gold Mineralization at the Malmyzh Project in Eastern Russia - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Gold Summit Closes First Tranche of Private Placement - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Kiska Consolidates Ownership of Mexican Assets - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Universal Uranium Ltd.: Court Orders Escrow Release in Crosshair Action - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Terrane Metals Corp.: McLeod Lake Indian Band Announces Strong Support For Mt. Milligan Project - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Aldrin Increases Private Placement Offering From $5 Million to $7 Million - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Ranger Gold Corp. Announces Expansion of Management Team - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Jinshan Announces Restatement of Its Third Quarter Financial Statements for the Period Ending September 30th 2009 - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Quantum Lists on Frankfurt Exchange, Hires AXINO - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Globex Increases Interest in Timmins Talc-Magnesite Project - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Silver Falcon Mining, Inc. (SFMI) Announces April 19, 2010 Mill Production Start-Up - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Altius Minerals Corporation (TSX: ALS) Reports Third Quarter Financial Results - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

UEX Announces Significant Unconformity Intersections at Shea Creek's 58B Area including 7.6 Metres of 1.81% eU(3)O(8) in SHE-133-3 and 2.4 Metres of 6.55% - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Douglas Lake Mkuvia Update - Ruby Creek Completes Mkuvia Due Diligence and Has Paid $250,000 - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

AmeriLithium Acquires 650,000 Acre Lithium Asset in Alberta, Canada - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

New Dawn's Turk Mine in Zimbabwe Increases February 2010 Gold Production to 1,234 ounces or 38.4 kg's - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Azimut: Goldcorp starts drilling program at Wabamisk, James Bay region, Quebec - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Megastar Updates SEDEX Property Option Agreement - More
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Orex's Coneto Project Continues to Yield High Gold and Silver Values - More
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Crosshair Intersects 0.18% Vanadium Over 45.9 Metres - More
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Cu-Ni Potential Independently Confirmed on Cartier's Riviere Dore Property - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Mirasol announces start of Joaquin Silver Project Phase Four Drilling and Final Results from Phase Three Program - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Tinka Lodges Amendment to Colquipucro Drill Program, Peru - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Franconia Minerals to Present at John Tumazos Very Independent Research, LLC Metals Conference in New York - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Yukon-Nevada Gold Corp. successful testing of mercury recovery and control technology - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Ireland Inc. Completes Installation of Pilot Plant Leach Circuit - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Zincore Reports on 2009 Activities and Plans for 2010 - More
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Takara Resources Inc. Completes Filing Statement and Shareholder Consents for Acquisition of Gold Assets in Guyana - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Metanor Resources Inc. : 50% Increase in Capacity at Bachelor Mill Ni 43-101 on Barry in April 2010 - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Quest Uranium Advances 2010 Exploration Plans on Its Strange Lake Ree Project, Northeastern Quebec - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Lydian on Track to a Low-Cost Operation at Its Amulsar Gold Discovery in Armenia - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Energizer Resources Announces Closing of Private Placement Financing of US$6,500,000 - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Hochschild Mining sues Minera Andes over San Jose - More
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Aura Minerals Announces Inclusion to the S&P/TSX Composite Index - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Capstone Reports 2009 Year-End Reserve & Resource Estimates - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Marathon and Mountain Lake Continue to Confirm Gold Mineralization Near Surface and Updip from the Current NI 43-101 Compliant Resource - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Marathon's Drilling Confirms Near Surface Gold Mineralization at Leprechaun Deposit - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

CanAlaska Uranium Receives Permits for Re-Commencement of Uranium and REE Exploration in Manitoba - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Kalimantan Gold Corporation Limited: Status Report - More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

NovaGold Returns to S&P/TSX Indices - "NovaGold Resources Inc. (TSX:NG - News)(AMEX:NG - News) today announced that it has been reintroduced to the Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX Composite Index, effective at market open on March 22, 2010. The Composite is TSX's headline index, tracking the largest TSX-listed companies based on market capitalization. NovaGold has also been added to the S&P/TSX Gold and S&P/TSX Global Mining indices." More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Exeter and Extorre trading March 17-24, 2010 - "Exeter and Extorre will trade as two separate companies commencing Thursday March 18, 2010. In order to receive Extorre shares, an investor must execute a trade to purchase Exeter shares on the TSX before, and continue to hold such shares on, March 18, 2010. Specifically Exeter shares will trade "ex-distribution" on the TSX on March 18, 2010 and the record date for distribution of Extorre shares to Exeter shareholders will be March 22, 2010 (the "Record Date")." More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Gammon Comments on Class Action Certification - Notes that the Breadth of the Potential Class has been Significantly Reduced by the Court - "We believe the Court's decision not to certify the claim in respect of secondary market purchases and in respect of those purchasers who acquired securities outside Canada, significantly reduces the scale of any potential claim." More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Great Basin Gold Added to the S&P/TSX Global Gold Index and the S&P/TSX Global Mining Index - "Great Basin Gold Ltd. ("Great Basin Gold" or the "Company") (TSX: GBG; NYSE Amex: GBG; JSE: GBG) today announced that Standard and Poor's (S&P) has added Great Basin Gold to its S&P/TSX Global Gold Index as well as its S&P/TSX Global Mining Index, effective before market open on Monday, March 22, 2010." More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

Apollo Gold Reports Net Operating Cash Flow of $3.4 million in 2009 - "For the year ended December 31, 2009, the Company reported a net loss of $61.7 million due mainly to (i) an unrealized loss from the mark-to-market change in fair value of the gold hedge book of $44.2 million, slightly offset by an unrealized gain from the Canadian dollar hedge contracts of $6.8 million for a net unrealized, non-cash loss of $37.4 million; (ii) a realized loss on gold delivered against the gold forward contracts of $7.2 million, slightly offset by a realized gain on the Canadian dollar forward contracts of $0.8 million for a net realized loss of $6.4 million; (iii) a change in the fair value of Canadian currency denominated warrants issued by Apollo resulting in a non-cash loss of $10.7 million and (iv) interest expense of $8.0 million, which included $3.8 million related to the project finance facility and mining equipment leases. The above losses and expenses were partially offset by income from operations of $6.7 million." More
- March 17, 2010 | Item | ShareThis

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