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Vietnam to close all gold trading floors
By Tim Johnston in Bangkok
Published: January 2 2010 02:00 | Last updated: January 2 2010 02:00
Vietnam has ordered all gold trading floors to close by the end of March, ending a business that turns over $1BN a day but which the government feared was spinning out of control.

"Both the owners of the gold-trading floors and traders are doing their transactions on a fragile foundation that lacks legal, economic and technical frameworks and knowledge," the government said.

The order also bans using overseas accounts, but does not affect jewellery or retail gold sales.

The government said it was concerned that some investors had been drawn into overleveraging their positions by low interest rates and the increasing price of gold , which has risen from $660 a troy ounce when the first trading floor began in 2007 to $1,100.

The government said that in some cases, investors had only been required to put up 7 per cent of the value of their portfolio.

The ban will affect about 20 gold trading floors, but it is unclear if the government intends to re-write the regulations and allow the floors to re-open, or if the move is permanent.

The trade has become a lucrative source of income for many of the banks and trading houses that have opened the exchanges, and the ban could hit profits. But analysts say it could free liquidity that might flow back into the stock markets, lifting the index.

Vietnam's big appetite for gold has put pressure on the dong and was a key factor in forcing the country to devalue the currency by

5 per cent in November.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/abccc624-f73d-11de-9fb5-00144feab49a.html?nclick_check=1