Gold reaches one-year high, sales soar

On Friday morning, price in Vietnam rose by nearly VND1 million a tael, as the global price increased by $35 to $1,773 an ounce.

Bao Tin Minh Chau Co, a major gold trader in Hanoi, saw a long line of customers queuing to sell the precious metal at the opening session.

The price dropped a little in the afternoon but buyers insisted on selling to earn profits.

A customer from Hai Ba Trung District said queuing for 20 minutes didn’t make her unhappy as she could sell the 1.2 tael bought two months ago at only VND41.73 million a tael to pocket VND6.8 million in difference.

The buying – selling trend was a bit different in Ho Chi Minh City, where Saigon Jewelry Co, the country’s largest gold trader, opened the morning session at VND47.3 million a tael before hiking the rate to a record VND47.4 million just minutes later.

The gap between domestic and global gold price was some VND2.64 million a tael.

Rates however constantly declined as of 10am to only VND47.24 million a tael at 2pm, but a general manager of a gold company said transactions included both buying and selling, rather than the sale-dominated state in Hanoi.

US stimulus plan

On the world market, Brent crude oil rose to a four-month peak, the S&P 500 neared a five-year high and European shares rose to their highest levels in 14 months, following the Federal Reserve's aggressive new plan to spark the US economy, Reuters reported.

Reuters quoted the Fed as saying on Thursday that it would pump $40 billion into the economy each month until the jobs market shows sustained improvement.

The plan boosted risk assets on Friday, sending global stocks to a 13-month high and driving the dollar to a more than four-month low against the euro.

Gold hit a 6-1/2-month high, putting it on course for a fourth straight week of gains and extending Thursday's 2 percent rise. Spot gold stood at $1,771 an ounce at 1822 GMT, according to Reuters.