Where is the Gold?

Over the past fortnight, we have seen a sharp fall in gold prices. This fall in price has stimulated demand for gold from consumers and investors across the globe. After a year of dull demand for gold, the sharp fall in prices provided a golden opportunity for consumers and investors waiting on the sidelines to buy gold. This spurt in demand shows that consumers and investors believe that gold is attractively priced at current levels (approx. Rs. 11,500 per 10 grams).

The past few days have been very busy for gold market traders and for employees at the gold vaults. Demand has been strong and widespread, with gold markets in the Middle East, Europe and Asia witnessing strong demand. The strongest demand continues to come from the Indian markets. This has once again reinforced the belief that there will continue to be increased demand for gold from consumers/investors in India. Gold refiners on the other hand have been literally struggling to meet the increased demand for gold.

Demand for gold in India has been so huge that despite a sharp increase in gold imports over the past fortnight, there has been acute shortage of physical gold in the market. Premiums charged by wholesale suppliers and banks have increased to abnormal levels, way beyond what has been seen in the past. What does this indicate? Is this a one-off scenario where refiners and suppliers couldn’t match the unexpected increase in gold demand i.e. they weren’t ready for it? or will there be continued supply constraints for a longer period of time?

The second scenario looks more likely.

An analysis of trends in the three main supply sources for gold (Gold Mines, Central Banks and Scrap Gold), will help to throw more light on this.

Supply of physical gold from mines has been virtually stagnant since the beginning of the decade. There has not been any major discovery of new gold reserves over the past few years. The process of exploration and opening of new mines has become even more challenging due to environmental bottlenecks, manpower, equipment and power shortages.

Historically, Central Banks have been active influencers in the gold market. There have been many instances in the past wherein Central Banks have aggressively sold physical gold, leading to depressed gold prices. However, recent trends show that the reverse seems to be happening now. According to the World Gold Council, trends indicate that gold sales by signatories to the Central Bank Gold Agreement (CBGA), could be the lowest since the CBGA was signed in 1999. With only one month to go before the year end of September 2008, only about 319 tonnes of gold have been sold so far this year by the European central banks. This is against their maximum allowable annual (September 2008 end) sale quota of 500 tonnes. Central Banks worldwide are putting increased importance on gold reserves especially in these times of global economic turmoil. The global economy is going through a pretty traumatic period, and the Central Banks believe that having gold to back up t heir currency is a good idea.

Gold Scrap (typically old jewellery and jewellery manufacturing wastage) has been a major source of supply over the past year. At the prevailing attractive price levels, consumers would be reluctant to exchange old jewellery for new and would rather buy new gold jewellery. The increased demand and higher premiums for physical gold over the past fortnight also suggests that scrap supply has virtually vanished.

The demand in gold just doesn’t seem to be waning. It is increasing every day. Buyers who adore jewellery and those preparing for the upcoming marriage season are rushing in to buy gold. Investors want to buy more gold to protect their portfolio from rising inflation, economic uncertainity and unpredictable and volatile stock markets. Investors in India, have also increasingly preferred to buy gold through Gold Exchange Traded Funds. Globally, investors who buy gold for investment purposes have preferred buying gold exchange traded funds rather than buying physical gold coins or bars. This trend is catching on rapidly in India. This is primarily due to the many benefits that Gold Exchange Traded Funds offer including lower purchase cost, purity, security, transparency and tax efficiency.

It is increasingly clear, that demand for physical gold is set to go higher in the near term especially given the current attractive price levels. Supply of physical gold does not seem sufficient enough to satisfy the needs of hungry gold consumers. The fundamental question is - "Where is the gold supply going to come from?" Gold Mines are not producing enough, Central Banks are selling lesser gold, Scrap Gold is virtually not available. We are still ahead of the peak demand season and facing a supply crunch already. What would happen when demand accelerates during the festival/marriage season that will start from mid September onwards? Where is the gold going to come from to cater to the peak demand?

Buy some gold now before the demand supply mismatch leads gold to higher levels.

Buy Gold now

Tips for Job Interview

Interviewing for a job is a very stressful and difficult process Here are nine secrets to consider.



1. Discover what you really want out of your work and life. Discover your true passions, desires, beliefs, and talents so that you can paint a picture of your true work and life goals, from your own perspective.



2. Develop and define the job you really want.That"s right! Design and define the job that will allow you to fulfill your passions, desires, and beliefs and maximize your talents. What you are doing is building your ideal job around what you want as opposed to looking at job opportunities that come along to evaluate. Believe it or not, your ideal job actually exits in more than one way and within the personal parameters you set.



3. Find out what companies have positions that meet your ideal position requirements. Look at and research all of the possible companies within the geographical area you designated to discover what positions within these companies you would want. Do not worry about whether they have job vacancies or are in a hiring mode.



4. Evaluate the companies that have your desired jobs. Make sure you would want to work for the companies that have your ideal jobs. They need to have integrity and treat their employees and customers in the manner you would want to be treated. Determine whether they operate in an industry that you want to work in.



5. Research the companies you selected.Once again, do not be put off or discouraged if the companies are not hiring. Why? Because companies are always looking for the right employees and will have to eventually hire new employees to survive. Determine who actually makes hiring decisions, and what is important to them. Many companies disguise this information through HR departments or hiring committees. If possible, try to find out how you can contact hiring decision-makers directly. Get their e-mail addresses, direct telephone numbers, or find someone in the company who can be a liaison for you.



6. Contact the decision-makers and tell them you want to work for them in the specific jobs you chose. Express your enthusiasm for that specific job or jobs. The fewer jobs you designate the better. You want them to know you can be trusted by truthfully exposing your commitment to seeking your dream job, even though they may not have an opening. You are, in essence, recruiting them to work in your dream job. Let them know that you will be very productive because you will excel at the job, and also that you will be a very grateful and energetic employee because you are doing what you love. You are not just asking for a job so they will pay you, but you have targeted a specific job at that company, and you are committed to contributing in that position.



7. Ask them if there are any special skills or qualifications you will need to be accepted in the position. If you do not have the sought-after skills and qualifications for the job, either find a way to get them beforehand or see if you can attain them within the company as an employee. This approach directs attention to what the employer wants and away from your resume compared to others" resumes. It will also show them your commitment to attaining that job. Stay in contact to alert employers of your new skills, qualifications, and continued interest.



8. If necessary, be willing to take an interim job. This way you can work on the required skills and qualifications, and you can obtain an income while you prepare for the job. You will also be in a better position to take your dream job when it becomes available.



9. Get support from somebody during the process. Some of the secret steps discussed above will probably appear to be daunting to you, which is to be expected. Enlist the help of another person to discuss all of the above steps and to map out the best strategy to get your ideal job. This person should be a trusted and strong supporter of your goal, as well as someone who will offer you another perspective to assist in the execution of your plan. Getting your ideal job is an extremely important objective, and it is worth enlisting the help of someone to actually get it.



Final Thoughts
Employers constantly face the problem of finding and surrounding themselves with the right employees who want to work for them, whom they can trust, and who will be very productive with the least amount of supervision. You will definitely get their attention, when you recruit employers for the specific job you chose, because of your honesty, your commitment, your enthusiasm, and your desire to produce for them. In fact, you may even appear to be too good to be true.


Many times the people who are filling the jobs that you want are not happy in the position. They are not producing or are causing other problems for the employers. Your request for employment for these specific jobs will give employers an option that they only dream about.