SPDR Gold Trust (NYSE:GLD) Continues Record Amount of Gold Held

The SPDR Gold Trust (NYSEArca:GLD) reached record levels of gold they hold again, as on their website they show they've increased their gold holdings to 1,313.13 metric tons as the close of the trading session on Tuesday. It rose slightly to 1,313.14 metric tons about 12:30 PM EDT on Wednesday.

So far in 2010, the gold ETF has increased by 13.2 percent, and is valued at $52.2 billion, while holding assets worth $38.54 billion.

Since the latter part of 2009, the fund has added close to 180 metric tons of gold to its holdings.

John Paulson's Gold Investments Mixed in 2010

Kinross Gold (NYSE:KGC), SPDR Gold Trust (NYSE:GLD) and Anglogold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) are all part of the massive gold holdings of hedge fund manager John Paulson, and so far in 2010 they haven't done a lot to increase the value of the fund, although Anglogold and the SPDR Gold Trust have helped some over the last six months, at least generating gains during that time.

Although that is the case so far, the gold miners are poised to take off, along with gold prices in general, as they've lagged behind the price movements of gold for some time, and signs are there showing that has began to change.

As far as the numerous gold holdings of Paulson, they should contribute strongly to his fund over the rest of the year, and it'll be surprising if he doesn't have positive returns for the third year in a row.

Rumors are so far he's down by close to 3.3 percent for the year.

SPDR Gold Trust (NYSE:GLD) Offering 239 Million More Shares

SPDR Gold Trust (NYSE:GLD) has filed with the SEC for a follow-on offering of 239.3 million shares, a huge 57.5 percent increase in shares of the gold ETF.

Shares available now are 416.4 million, and after the offering, would increase to 655.7 million.

This could temporarily dilute the share value in the company, but the extraordinary demand for gold should help balance that off and overall increase the value of the company, and it shouldn't take long for the added number of shares to retain and increase in value.

SPDR ended Thursday session at $118.69, up $0.22, or 0.19 percent.

SPDR Gold Trust (NYSE:GLD) Record Holdings, Increased Short Interest

SPDR Gold Trust (NYSE:GLD) continues to increase their holdings at a record level, as each time the add to their physical holdings, they are now breaking a record, although occasionally they do divest of gold for a variety of reasons.

I doubt if we'll see much of that going forward though, as demand for physical gold continues to go up in the face of the devaluing of currencies around the world and potential social unrest, which has already begun in some nations.

For SPDR, they continue to move in step with gold prices, and there was also an increased short interest in the gold ETF in the first half of May, with close to 29 million shares being shorted, up from around 14 million shares from the last reporting period.

Physical holdings in gold as of about 6:50 p.m. EST, stood at 1,267.32 tons, or 40,745,654.26, another all-time record.

The value of the gold at today's gold prices is $48,806,853,742.68.

George Soros' SPDR Gold (NYSE:GLD) Stake Lowered

Earlier in the year George Soros had mentioned gold was a bubble ready to burst, although he failed to include the idea that he had made a huge investment in gold interests, including SPDR Gold Trust (NYSE:GLD).

In a recent required 13F filing, Soros revealed that his Soros Fund Management had cut back on his position in SPDR Gold by 9.6 percent, probably from concerns over the high rise in price of the safe haven metal.

This is probably a mistake on Soros part, but we'll wait and see.

I think the thing that Soros misses is the regular guy on the street hasn't entered the gold bull market yet, and that should protect the upward movement in the gold prices from being a bubble.

A bubble usually occurs in any investment sector when those that don't understand the fundamentals of an investment finally decide to invest in it when it is already full priced.

This normally shoots the price of an investment up, when the support for it isn't there, ultimately creating a bubble. That's what happened in the housing market, as people continued to bid the price of homes up thinking there's no such thing as a ceiling on value.

It doesn't seem that gold has entered this phase at all yet, and even if it did, the fundamentals are there to justify it. There will of course be many corrections on the gold bull market journey, but that won't be a bubble.

Market conditions and the unprecedented spending of money and budget deficits ensure gold will continue rising in price for years to come, with the occasional correction along the way.

Eventually there will be a bubble in gold, just like anything else that has gained favor over a period of time before those that are clueless enter into the fray.

Gold is probably years away from that happening, and the economic conditions will ensure it won't be bursting for any time soon, and will continue on its upward climb.

SPDR Gold (NYSE:GLD) Holds $48 Billion in Gold

As the price of gold continues to rise, SPDR Gold (NYSE:GLD), the largest gold ETF in the world, has increased in value with it, now holding 38.9 million ounces of gold, worth over $48 billion.

The price of gold increased to almost $1,250 an ounce in the early part of the trading day on Friday, although it plummeted just before noon, and has fallen down near $1,231 an ounce on Saturday.

With the SPDR Gold Trust being a simple investment which moves in unison with the price of gold, investors have been pouring money into it as confidence in paper currencies wane, and government have their central banks printing out money at unprecedented levels, which will ultimately lead to inflation as their currencies are debased.

It is also having an impact on exports from countries whose currencies are strengthening against the euro, and that has caused problems as well.

Either way, gold will flourish because of the endless printing of money and politician refusing to stop offering bailouts to every large business or nation that gets in trouble.

Gold is considered the reserve currency of the world by many, and safety and a hedge against inflation will keep that the case for many years.

SPDR Gold Trust (NYSE:GLD) Performing Great for Investors

The SPDR Gold Trust (NYSE:GLD) was created to move in step with the price of gold bullion, and it continues to do that, moving in step with the increasing price of gold, starting the year at about $88 a share, and now over $121 a share as I write.

Now that sPDR has broke through the $120 mark, and with the sovereign debt crisis in Europe and China inflation, gold is sure to continue up its upwards trajectory, and SPDR Gold Trust will respond accordingly.

Gold ETFs continue to be an important part of investors' portfolios, and SPDR is extremely simple, inexpensive and in the right place at the right time for those wanting to protect their assets from the enormous risks in the market.

SPDR Gold Trust (NYSEArca:GLD) Ton Record

The SPDR Gold Trust (NYSEArca:GLD) has the highest metric tons of gold assets held by the fund, as the ETF increased its metric tons by 19.78 to 1,185.79 tons, according to their Web site.

This is the highest monthly increase since February 2009.

SPDR, backed by gold bullion, is the sixth-largest holder of physical gold in the world.

Range over the last year for SPDR have been from 88.82 - 119.54.

Safe haven continues to be the story for gold and gold prices, as equities continue to fall out of favor.

Gold price today are at $1,208.00 when I last looked.

SPDR Gold (NYSEArca:GLD) Record Bullion Holdings

SPDR Gold Trust

Gold bullion held by SPDR Gold Trust (NYSEArca:GLD) has reached record levels, as the exchange-traded fund added 9.7 metric tons of gold to its reserves, the highest ever held by the ETF.

Holding as of Thursday for SPDR stand at 1,140.43 tons after adding the physical gold to their holdings.

The increase in gold was the largest addition in over six months, and represented an increase of 0.9 percent.

SPDR said their net asset value stands at $42.09 billion.

Is SPDR Gold Shares (NYSE:GLD) Still Good Investment?

SPDR Gold Shares Good Investment?

With many well-known investors continuing to put a large amount of their money in gold, the question becomes whether or not an ETF like SPDR Gold Shares (NYSE:GLD) is still a good investment.

I bring it up like that because many of the major investors with a large position in gold bought it at lower prices, and now gold seems to be remaining tight around the $1,100 level, seeming to imply it's going to move forward incrementally rather than in huge swings. That is probably a good thing for most investors.

But as far as SPDR Gold Shares, it can really be simplified as to the answer to the question if it's still a good investment for you. The think to ask is this: Is gold still a good investment? If the answer for you is yes, the answer for SPDR Gold Shares should also be yes.

I think in the current gold environment we'll have to take a longer time-frame than possibly in the past with SPDR, but again, I think that's more healthy than the huge gains it made in a relatively short time.

From November 2008, when the gold ETF dropped as low as $70 a share till now, it has gained almost $40 a share, a nice move by any metric used.