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South Korea buys gold for first time in 13 years
By In-Soo Nam
The Wall Street Journal
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405311190352020457648322395248874...
SEOUL, South Korea -- The Bank of Korea said Tuesday it increased the amount of gold held as part of the country's foreign exchange reserves for the first time in 13 years, diversifying its portfolio away from the dollar and toward an investment class widely considered a safer bet during crises.
The central bank bought 25 metric tons of gold from the global market between June and July, bringing its total gold reserves to 39.4 tons as of the end of July, the BOK said in a statement.
"The gold purchase, as a safety net, will help us cope with volatile global financial markets and enhance investor confidence in Korea in times of crises," Hong Taeg-ki, chief of the BOK's reserve management group, told Dow Jones Newswires. He declined to comment whether the BOK will continue with its gold purchases.
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Prophecy Platinum Reports 10.97 Million Ounces Inferred
and 1.04 Million Ounces Indicated PGM+Gold in Yukon
An independent resource report on the Wellgreen project in the Yukon Territory in Canada has just confirmed that it as one of the largest platinum group metals projects in Canada and one of the few outside South Africa, Prophecy Platinum Corp. Chairman John Lee says.
The report, compliant with Canadian National Instrument 43-101, was written by geologist Todd McCracken of Wardrop Engineering Inc., a Tetra Tech company. It incorporated drill data from 701 diamond drill holes (182 surface and 519 underground) totaling more than 53,222 metres. Using a 0.4 percent nickel equivalent cutoff grade, the Wellgreen deposit now contains a total inferred resource of 289.2 million tonnes at an average grade of 0.53 g/t platinum, 0.42 g/t palladium, 0.23 g/t gold (1.18 g/t PGM and gold), 0.38 percent nickel, and 0.35 percent copper. Separately, the deposit also contains an indicated resource of 14.3 million tonnes at an average grade of 0.99 g/t platinum, 0.74 g/t palladium, 0.52 g/t gold (2.25 g/t PGM and gold), 0.69 percent nickel, and 0.69 percent copper.
Prophecy Platinum Corp. trades on the Toronto Venture Exchange under the symbol NKL, on the pink sheets in the United States as PNIKD, and in Frankfurt as P94P.
For the complete press release on the Wellgreen report, please visit:
http://prophecyplat.com/news_2011_july14_prophecy_platinum_new_resource_...
This is the first time the BOK has resumed buying the precious metal since the central bank purchased gold from Koreans during the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis, when Korean individuals took their personal gold out of their dressers as part of a public gold-raising campaign to help the country out of the crisis.
Central banks around the world have gained renewed interest in having gold as part of their monetary reserves after the 2007-2008 global financial crisis, and gold prices have soared on rising demand.
Prices of gold in the spot market rose to a record $1,632.74 a troy ounce Friday amid sovereign debt concerns in the U.S. and Europe. Gold prices fell only a tad even after the U.S. announced a debt deal Sunday.
European central banks, big sellers of gold just a few years earlier, have all since stopped offloading the metal. India and Sri Lanka were among major buyers when the International Monetary Fund sold gold last year. China, which has the world's biggest foreign reserves, has been increasing its gold holdings, though its purchases have been mainly from domestic producers.
Citing World Gold Council data, the BOK said the country likely ranks 45th in gold holdings with its 39.4 tons -- rising 11 notches because of its recent purchase.
BOK's gold holdings, at market prices, account for 0.7% of its reserves, up from 0.2% prior to the purchase.
The BOK said Korea's reserves rose for the first time in three months to a record high of $311.03 billion at the end of July.
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Golden Phoenix Q2 2011 Conference Call Posted at Company Internet Site
The second quarter 2011 conference call of Golden Phoenix Minerals Inc. (GPXM) has been posted at the company Internet site for immediate playback. The call includes updates on the start of gold production at the company's Mineral Ridge gold project in Nevada, the letter of intent to acquire the Santa Rosa gold mine in Panama, and the company's due-diligence efforts to secure a senior stock exchange listing.
The conference call is 18 minutes long and you download an mp3 of it here:
http://www.goldenphoenix.us/audio/GPXMCC071211.mp3
Or play back the call here:
http://goldenphoenix.us/conferencecalls/
Golden Phoenix is a U.S. mining company with international exposure to gold, silver, and strategic metals. The company's business model combines project generation and royalty mining that offers the potential for exploration upside, coupled with the backing of production and future royalty streams. View company videos here:
