iNVEZZ.com, Wednesday, October 8: The price of gold has extended gains to a third straight session today as buyers returned following a one-week holiday in China, the world’s biggest consumer of the precious metal. Gold for immediate delivery rose 0.73 percent, or $8.78, to $1,217.37 per ounce as of 12:40 BST, and was trading 3.3 percent below its 50-day simple moving average of $1,259.28. Prices have climbed for a third day, the longest winning streak since August. Spot gold touched $1,183.24 on Monday, the lowest level for the year. UBS analyst Edel Tully said in a report: “Consumers who are faced with a local gold price which is 13 percent below the peak this year may be finding value here […] Physical demand is returning.� Markets in China reopened today after being closed since the beginning of the month for the 65th anniversary of the People’s Republic. Physical demand may be further stirred ahead of the Diwali Indian national holiday, which will be held near the end of the month. Gold was also boosted as global stock markets were sold-off following yesterday’s downgrade to the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) global economic growth forecast. The Washington-based lender cut its global growth expectations to 3.3 percent for this year from its July forecast of four percent. The fund also said there was a 1-in-3 chance that the euro zone would fall back into recession. Standard Bank analyst Walter de Wet said in a note quoted by The Wall Street Journal that the $1,180 level was providing strong support and according to him there was little value in making short bets at these prices. “Overall we believe that the metal will receive headwinds this quarter and, while the price may move higher from current levels, we would expect rallies to fade,� de Wet said.

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