Courtesy of Mish.
Bloomberg, frequently a fount of anti-gold propaganda came out with a pair of articles on Wednesday, worth a read primarily from a contrarian point of view.
Gold Bull Paulson Cuts SPDR Stake by Half in Bear Market
Bloomberg reports Gold Bull Paulson Cuts SPDR Stake by Half in Bear Market
Billionaire hedge fund manager John Paulson, who told investors as recently as last month that they should own gold, cut his holdings in the metal by more than half as prices plunged into a bear market.
Paulson & Co., the largest investor in the SPDR Gold Trust, the biggest exchange-traded product for the metal, pared its stake to 10.2 million shares in the three months ended June 30 from 21.8 million at the end of the first quarter, according to a government filing yesterday. The New York-based firm, which manages $18 billion, cut its ownership for the first time since 2011 “due to a reduced need for hedging,” according to an e-mailed response to questions.
Billionaires George Soros and Daniel Loeb sold their entire SPDR stakes in the past quarter, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filings showed.
At an investor conference on July 17, Paulson affirmed a commitment to investing in the metal and stocks of producers to hedge against currency debasement as central banks pump money into economies. The firm didn’t provide additional comment yesterday on its SPDR stake. The hedge fund made $15 billion for investors in 2007 by betting against subprime mortgages before the housing
collapse.Money managers cut their bullish gold bets by 27 percent to 48,103 futures and options in the week ended Aug. 6, U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission data show on Aug. 9. The net-long positions dropped 76 percent since early October.
David Einhorn’s Greenlight Capital Inc. sold its entire stake of 1.97 million shares in Barrick, the largest producer of the metal, in the second quarter, a government filing showed yesterday. Jonathan Gasthalter, a spokesman, declined to comment.
“Confidence in gold is rattled over the short term, and we saw rotation of funds out of gold into equities that continue to march higher,” Scott Gardner, who helps manage $400 million at Verdmont Capital SA in Panama City, said in a telephone interview.
Who’s Left to Sell?
With all that selling, some might wonder “Who’s Left to Sell?” The answer might not be what you think at first glance.
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