Commodity Focus: Gold
BY ELIZABETH FABRI THE gold price may have slumped; but this hasn’t dampened the spirits of Australian gold producers with the big players posting record profits, and a new cohort of conglomerate-focused explorers making moves in the Pilbara. In January gold prices were hovering at a peak of $US1362 per ounce on the back of a turbulent year for US politics and weakening US dollar. Australian gold producers, which benefit strongly from the AU/US exchange rate, were widely optimistic for the year ahead. But over the last eight months, gold prices have taken a dive, plummeting to lows of $US1176/oz mid-August, in line with a rising US dollar and inflation-adjusted interest rates. Australia’s biggest gold players weren’t complaining though; Saracen,…