Daily Gold Update

Source: Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

Austin— Holding most of its gains from seven straight winning sessions, gold slipped 50 cents to close just under $1,294 as traders prepare for tomorrow's policy announcement from the ECB. The metal climbed to a new five-month high of $1,306 before slipping back on profit-taking. it is still up more than 9% so far in 2015.

The ECB is expected to announce a plan to buy 50 billion euros per month in government bonds, beginning in March. According to reports, this Fed-style program of quantitative easing will run for either one year or through the end of 2016.

Tantamount to printing money, the ECB's plan will flood the Eurozone with ether 600 billion or one trillion euros, depending on the duration, in a desperate attempt to reverse falling prices and promote growth. QE is considered supportive of higher gold prices because it will further undermine the value of the euro and drive investors into alternative stores of value.

The other precious metals were mostly lower, with platinum and palladium dropping 0.8% and 1.3%, respectively, while outlier silver gained 1.3%

At the Comex close: February gold slipped 50 cents to $1,293.70; March silver gained 24 centsto $18.19; April platinum dropped $10.20 to $1,276.40; and March palladium lost $10.50 to $768.25 an ounce.