By Swansy Afonso - Aug 22, 2011 7:01 AM ET
Gold may climb the most in more than three decades this year as investors and central banks boost their holdings on concern that global economic growth may stall amid a worsening sovereign-debt crisis in the U.S. and Europe.
Gold for immediate delivery may reach $2,000 an ounce by the yearend, extending this year’s gain to 41 percent, according to the median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of 13 traders and analysts at a conference in Kovalam in South India on Aug. 20. That would be the most since the 127 percent surge in 1979, according to Bloomberg data.
The metal is set for an 11th year of gains as holdings in exchange-traded products reached a record on Aug. 8 and central banks are adding to their reserves for the first time in a generation. George Soros, the billionaire investor, cut his holdings in the SPDR Gold Trust this year as prices rallied, while billionaire John Paulson maintained the largest stake, according to regulatory filings last week.
“The economic data, debt problems, balance sheet problems are all deep-rooted and will take years to work out of the system and that is why we are still bullish on the trend in gold,” said Paul Walker, global head of precious metals at industry researcher GFMS Ltd...
Gold for immediate delivery surged as much as 2.3 percent to a record $1,894.80 an ounce today and traded at $1,878.73 an ounce at 6:58 p.m. in Singapore. Prices gained 6 percent last week, the most since January 2009. Bullion for October delivery gained as much as 1 percent to an all-time high of 28,244 rupees ($616) per 10 grams on the Multi Commodity Exchange of India Ltd. and traded at 27,800 rupees at 4:29 p.m. in Mumbai...
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