2006-04-25 06:34 (New York)
April 25 (Bloomberg) -- Gold may rise to $1,600 an ounce in three years and
silver may reach $50 an ounce if the dollar declines and the oil price keeps
rising, according to Swiss Asia Capital (S) Pte. Ltd.
The record current account deficit in the U.S. was debasing the dollar and U.S. bonds and increasing the appeal of bullion as a store of value, said Juerg Kiener, who founded Swiss Asia Capital in 2000.
Increased demand for gold from investment funds has helped push up the price of the metal 44 percent in the past year. Silver has risen 72 percent in the same time. Sumitomo Corp., Japan's third-largest trading company, also advised buying bullion at the conference.``I am targeting gold at $1,200-$1,600'' (an ounce), said Kiener, who has about 15 percent of the $250 million he manages invested in precious metals. ``Debt has lost contact with reality'' in the U.S., he said. ``It takes $4 debt to create $1 in gross domestic product. This is not sustainable. U.S. treasuries are losing value at high speed, debasing U.S. assets and the reserve currency.''.
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