Will the sovereign-debt crisis and inflation support European demand for metals as a safe-haven?
*The Wall Street Journal, by Nina Koeppen & Tom Fairless, February 25, 2011:
''The latest batch of buoyant inflation data from Germany, coupled
with another pickup in euro-zone bank lending, is cranking up the
pressure on the European Central Bank to reconsider its record-low
interest rate despite the continuing concerns over the sovereign-debt
crisis.
Preliminary data for individual German states published Friday indicate
that rising energy and food prices propelled pan-German inflation to
its highest level in well over two years.
'The current spike in headline inflation has not made life easier for
the ECB,' said Dirk Schumacher, an economist at Goldman Sachs in
Frankfurt.
Inflation is rising across the 17 countries that use the euro and, if
sustained, economists warn it could prompt the ECB to lift its key
interest rate early. Inflation edged above the sensitive 2%
threshold in February in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany's most
populous state, and also in Bavaria and Saxony, official data
showed. Although pan-German data haven't been released, the
pickup won't go by unnoticed at the ECB, providing more ammunition to
the inflation hawks on the bank's governing council who have warned
that rates won't stay at record lows indefinitely.
'If German HICP inflation in February comes in at 2.2%, it would
increase the chance that inflation across the euro-area will rise to
2.5% in February. That would be a more significant number for the
ECB,' said Fabio Fois, an economist at Barclays Capital.''
*This information is solely a highlight of the opinion of a third-party publication and is incomplete. Please subscribe to this publication for the full and timely opinion of the author and call a Monex Account Representative for any additional up-to-date information. This is not an offer to buy or sell precious metals. Investors should obtain advice based on their own individual circumstances and understand the risk before making any investment decision.
Call Now
Let us help you:
Personal Advisors
available now at
1-800-444-8317