LONDON GOLD FIX STUDY POINTS TO MANIPULATION

The London gold fix, the benchmark used by miners, jewellers and central banks to value the metal, may have been manipulated for a decade by the banks setting it, two researchers say. Unusual trading patterns about 3 p.m. in London, when the so-called afternoon fix is set on a private conference call between five of the biggest gold dealers, are a sign of collusive behaviour and should be investigated, the research paper says. The paper is the first to raise the possibility that the five banks overseeing the century-old rate -— Barclays Plc, Deutsche Bank AG, Bank of Nova Scotia, HSBC Holdings Plc and Société Générale SA — may have been actively working together to manipulate the benchmark.