VINACHEM

Price of gold in Vietnam fell by VND900,000 a tael (1.2 ounces) over the previous day on December 13 as global price tumbled 2.7 percent in the trading session in New York last night and continued to plunge in the trading session in Asia this morning.

Saigon Jewelry Company, the biggest gold processing and trading company in Vietnam, collected gold at VND43.75 million and sold at VND44 million around 10:09am Vietnamese time.

Hanoi-based Phu Quy Jewelry Company purchased SJC-brand gold at VND43.8 million and sold at VND44.05 million at 10:16am Vietnamese time.

Meanwhile, Bao Tin Minh Chau Jewelry Company quoted the price at VND42.85 million for buying, and VND43.1 million for selling at 11:56am Vietnamese time.

Bullion was severely declining; however, trading remained subdued on bullion market. Sacombank Jewelry Company said it traded just around 600 taels of gold yesterday. According to this company, jewelry market is boiling as the year ends.

Domestically, SJC-brand gold fetched VND1.8 million a tael, higher than global price.

On black market, one dollar was bought at VND21,110, and sold at VND21,150, an increase of VND10 per dollar over the previous day.

Internationally, gold set the biggest loss in the past three months on concerns over a possibility that the European sovereign-debt crisis might escalate again.

Gold for immediate delivery fell as much as $46 an ounce, or 2.7 percent, to close at $1,666.3 an ounce on the Comex in New York.

In Asia, spot gold was traded at $1,657.9 an ounce, down $8.7 an ounce at 9:30am Vietnamese time. Earlier, the metal sank $12 an ounce.

The euro exchange rate against the US dollar was below $1.32 a euro in Tokyo this morning from $1.34 the previous day.

SPDR Gold Trust, the largest exchange traded fund backed by bullion, sold 0.6 metric tons, reducing its holdings to 1,294.8 metric tons, the lowest level in the past three weeks. The company started to net sell after net buying for a long time.