LONDON (Commodity Online): While Gold is higher so far Monday, R.J. O’Brien & Associates cautions that the market could be rather quiet over the next week or two now that Chinese New Year holidays are under way.

“They were very strong buyers leading up to the New Year but now they are off celebrating,” R.J. O’Brien added.

Analysts doubt India or Arab nations will make up for the loss of Chinese buying interest during this time, unless prices fall and are seen as a bargain.

“So the market could drift lower, but we would expect to see good price dips well bought on a scale-down basis and any dollar strength could also limit upside potential for gold, silver, platinum, and palladium,” R.J. O’Brien concluded.