Money managers retain bullish gold positioning

KITCO--"Large speculators mostly held onto their net-bullish positioning in gold futures during the most recent reporting week for data compiled by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC)....Net long or short positioning in the CFTC data reflect the difference between the total number of bullish (long) and bearish (short) contracts. Traders monitor the data to gauge the general mood of speculators, although excessively high or low numbers are viewed by many as signs of overbought or oversold markets that may be ripe for price corrections...The fresh buying (increase of 1,319 total longs) exceeded the fresh selling (increase of 617 gross shorts). TD Securities commented that the U.S. Federal Reserve policymakers may be about to provide a structurally 'more dovish lean' to policy, which propelled gold prices higher just ahead of the long holiday weekend in the U.S. 'The yellow metal rose, even as the greenback and equities rallied, which suggests that positioning may again tilt toward length in the days to come,' TDS said. In silver, money managers' net-long position also rose slightly, coming at 57,179 futures contracts, compared to 57,014 in the prior week. As was the case with gold, the fresh buying (rise of 2,763 total longs) outpaced the fresh selling (increase of 2,598 gross shorts)."