Platinum Group Metals Price Bulletin - 12th December 2011 to 16th December 2011

Johnson Matthey London Base Prices at 0800 hrs, $/oz:

	Pt	Pd	Rh
Monday 12th December	1503	676	1525
Tuesday 13th December	1492	654	1500
Wednesday 14th December	1478	645	1475
Thursday 15th December	1405	625	1450
Friday 16th December	1429	631	1400

The gold market was hit by a substantial bout of liquidation this week as hedge funds and other investors covered losses in equities and moved to the perceived safety of the dollar to maintain what profits there may be as the year-end approaches. Gold consequently fell below $1,600 or the first time in almost three months, dragging platinum and palladium down too in a sell-off reminiscent of the darkest days of 2008.

Platinum

Platinum experienced a substantial sell-off this week, losing almost $100 in the first four days and reaching a two-year low of $1,405 on the 15^th. Predictably, there was buying interest from the Far East at this level which gave some support to the price.

Palladium

Palladium succumbed to the wider liquidation in the precious metals market, slumping to a two-week low. China announced plans to impose anti-dumping duties on vehicles imported from the US, posing further concerns about future growth in the world’s largest car market.

Rhodium

With more sellers in the market than buyers, and dragged down by the negative sentiment for precious metals in general, rhodium lost $125 through the week to reach $1,400 – the lowest level since mid-2008. Iridium and ruthenium were unchanged at $1,085 and $110 respectively.

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