Could gold lose its luster
Holding Gold Getting Scary for This Former Bull as Yields Rise
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Cohen & Steers pares gold holdings ahead of Fed rate decision
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Investors pulled $698 million from SPDR Gold in past week
The Federal Reserve is giving some gold investors a case of the jitters.
Cohen & Steers Capital Management, which oversees $61 billion in assets, was overweight on gold until last week, when comments from some Federal Reserve officials boosted speculation that the central bank will tighten monetary policy as soon as this month. With the interest-rate decision due next week, the asset manager opted to play it safe, paring its gold allocation.
The New York-based firm isn’t alone. Over the past week, investors pulled $698 million from SPDR Gold Shares, the largest exchange-traded fund backed by the metal, taking their holdings to the lowest since June, data compiled by Bloomberg through Tuesday show. Aggregate open interest in gold futures has dropped for four straight sessions, the longest stretch since May.
“We’ve been overweight gold for most of this year, which has been a good place to be,” Ben Ross, a portfolio manager at Cohen & Steers, said in an interview at the Bloomberg headquarters on Tuesday. “Gold would get hit pretty hard in a rising rate environment. We’re market-weight right now, and the reason is the 10-year Treasury yield is starting to really move and being in gold scares us.”
