Gold continues falling

Sacombank Jewelry Company bought gold at VND42.9 million and sold at VND43.28 million as of 10:10 am local time.

Saigon Jewelry Company, the biggest gold processor and trader in Vietnam, quoted the price at VND42.89 million for buying, and VND43.29 million for selling in Ho Chi Minh City.

Hanoi-based Phu Quy Jewelry Company purchased SJC-brand gold at VND43.15 million and sold at VND43.47 million at the same time.

Last week, the central bank allowed five commercial banks and Saigon Jewelry Company to sell gold and restart offshore gold trading accounts. It also banned banks and credit institutions to provide loans for gold purchases to stabilize the local bullion market. Thus, the gap between local and global prices was narrowed. Domestically, gold fetched VND1.7 million a tael higher than global price.

The dollar exchange rate was stable below VND21,400 per dollar on free market. The greenback was bought at VND21,300, and sold at VND21,370, almost unchanged as of last weekend.

After climbing for three straight days, the interbank exchange rate stalled at VND20,653 per dollar. Vietcombank still bought the greenback at VND20,856 per dollar, and sold at VND20,860 per dollar.

International, gold advanced after Germany and France, the two biggest economies in Europe, said they would announce measures to solve the sovereign-debt crisis by the end of this month. This move was made after credit ratings of the third and the fourth European largest economies, Italy and Spain, were downgraded.

Spot gold gained $12.7 an ounce over the closing price in New York to trade at $1,652.4 an ounce at 10:50 am Vietnamese time.

Last week, the heavy metal curbed its four-week losing streak, rising 0.9 percent.

The euro exchange rate against the US dollar was above $1.44 in Tokyo at 10:50 am Vietnamese time.

Crude oil futures edged up $0.32 a barrel to trade at $83.42 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange at the same time.