– “Without gold I would have starved to death” – Ewald Nowotny, governor of Austrian central bank and member of ECB’s governing council

– “I was born in 1944. When I was a baby, my mother could only buy food because she still had some gold coins…”

– “When the going gets tough, gold becomes the ultimate money” reports Die Presse

In the vault: Austrian Central Bank director Kurt Pribil, ECB Governor Nowotny and “Press” editor Nikolaus Jilch. – The Press (Clemens Fabry)

by Die Presse Editor Nikolaus Jilch

Under central bank governor Ewald Nowotny, Austria has brought back half of its gold reserves into the country. But why? What is the fascination of gold today? Why does a central bank store tons of shiny metal in their cellars? And what makes Nowotny himself gold? “Die Presse” visited the gold reserves below the central bank with the governor – and discussed their importance in an interview.

The press: Almost every person has a personal relationship with the gold. How is yours?

Ewald Nowotny: I grew up in a purely urban family. We had no relatives in the country. I’m born in 1944. When I was a baby, my mother could only buy food because she still had some gold coins. Without gold I would have starved. She always told me that. Therefore, this generation already has a certain gold affinity. In extreme times of crisis, this is one of the few things left to be accepted. Gold was the only thing left to the people of the city at that time. Before the silver cutlery was also traded at the farmer.

Are you yourself invested in gold?

Full article for subscribers of Die Presse

 

News and Commentary

Chinese gold demand continues to rise yoy (Sharps Pixley)

Asian Stocks Slide; Treasury Yields Pare Decline (Bloomberg)

Gold steady as investors wait for next week’s Fed meeting  (Reuters)

Gold futures mark highest finish about a week (Marketwatch)

U.S. weekly jobless claims drop as labor market picks up steam (Reuters)

Source: Bloomberg

Central banks should consider offering accounts to everyone (Economist.com)

These 6 charts show why gold prices may soon see a big rally(Economic Times)

Gold Market Dreams of Blockchain Supply Chain by Next Year (Bloomberg)

Putin tells Europe ‘I told you so’ about U.S. trade threat (Reuters)

U.S. unilateralism invites world to seek alternative to dollar – Lazard CEO (Bloomberg)

Gold Prices (LBMA AM)

07 Jun: USD 1,298.30, GBP 963.86 & EUR 1,097.97 per ounce

06 Jun: USD 1,295.25, GBP 964.57 & EUR 1,101.48 per ounce

05 Jun: USD 1,292.25, GBP 966.73 & EUR 1,105.13 per ounce

04 Jun: USD 1,294.65, GBP 966.46 & EUR 1,103.82 per ounce

01 Jun: USD 1,299.15, GBP 976.83 & EUR 1,111.42 per ounce

31 May: USD 1,303.50, GBP 978.54 & EUR 1,113.58 per ounce

30 May: USD 1,298.60, GBP 979.27 & EUR 1,119.26 per ounce

Silver Prices (LBMA)

07 Jun: USD 16.74, GBP 12.44 & EUR 14.15 per ounce

06 Jun: USD 16.55, GBP 12.33 & EUR 14.06 per ounce

05 Jun: USD 16.39, GBP 12.26 & EUR 14.03 per ounce

04 Jun: USD 16.44, GBP 12.29 & EUR 14.03 per o