Greeks turning in EUR for gold

Writes FT today:

Greek savers rush for gold

By Kerin Hope in Athens

Published: June 21 2011 13:50 | Last updated: June 21 2011 22:34

Greek citizens are emptying savings accounts and buying gold as they brace themselves for the possibility of a sovereign default and a run on the banks.

Pledges by socialist prime minister George Papandreou that his government would “save the country” have been widely discounted by the public. However, parliament gave him a vote of confidence late on Tuesday night. The socialists have a six-seat majority in the 300-member house.

Sales of gold coins have soared as savers seek a safer and fungible source of value.

Monthly bank withdrawals were running at €1.5bn-€2bn (£1.3bn-£1.8bn) in the first quarter. Last year, depositors withdrew €30bn, equivalent to 12.3 per cent of total savings, according to the central bank. Greek deposits worth an estimated €8bn were transferred to banks in Cyprus in 2010. But the flow has dried up this year amid fears that Cypriot banks could suffer contagion.

Just wait till the British, Japanese and American public realise they’re in the same, if not worse, situation than Greece. It seems the Chinese people are awake already.  Have you got your little piece of monetary stability yet?  Get some before its too late.

On the Chinese government responding to demand by upping production, note that the US government has just clamped down on gold ownership.

Collectors spur Beijing to step up production of gold Panda coins

By Jack Farchy in London

Published: June 21 2011 18:52 | Last updated: June 21 2011 18:52

China’s central bank will produce more than double the quantity of gold Panda coins this year than it had planned, in response to a surge in buying from Chinese investors.

The increase in production is “to meet the needs of collectors”, the central bank said in a statement posted on its website. Rising inflation in China and other Asian countries has inspired a surge in gold investment this year, according to bullion dealers, as investors turn to hard assets such as precious metals as a means of wealth preservation.

The People’s Bank of China said it would boost the circulation of the popular Panda coins, China’s official bullion coin, to 1.06m ounces in 2011, from about 500,000 ounces planned at the start of the year and 400,000 ounces last year. In addition, it plans to raise production of silver Pandas to 6.4m ounces from its earlier plan of 3.4m ounces.