April 15, 2011, 8:24 a.m. EDT
Gold, silver rally to fresh records
By Deborah Levine and Virginia Harrison, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Gold futures again pushed toward record territory Friday, while silver also tracked new highs.
The precious metals briefly pared gains during European trading as the dollar rose after Moody’s Investors Service downgraded Ireland, but they rebounded as investors sought them for safety from continued fiscal turmoil in Europe.
Gold futures for June delivery rose $5.60 or 0.4% to $1,478.30 an ounce, after settling at $1,472.40 on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The contract had touched $1,480.50 an ounce earlier.
Silver topped a fresh high, with the May contract adding 85 cents, or 1%, to $42.52 an ounce.
Prices for silver have rallied nearly 37% this year.
The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six currencies, fell to 74.617, its lowest level since December 2009, on Thursday, though it stabilized after a modest recovery. A weaker dollar supports gold, which is usually priced in the U.S. currency.
Analysts at Barclays Capital also noted that inflation fears are acting as a catalyst for pushing gold and silver prices higher, pointing to anecdotal data, known as the Beige Book, issued earlier this week by the U.S. central bank.
The latest Beige Book “highlighted inflationary worries amid the current economic recovery. Despite the improving U.S. economy, the Federal Reserve acknowledged increasing raw-material and energy costs have created upward pressures on the overall price level,” the analysts said in a research note.
Inflation in China sped up, data showed overnight, while figures on U.S. consumer inflation out Friday are expected to show continued increases. Read about Chinese inflation data.
Other metals trending lower
The broader suite of metals turned lower during European trading hours as the dollar gained.
May copper fell 2 cents, or 0.3%, to $4.27 a pound.
Palladium for June delivery lost $4.25, or 0.5%, to $770 an ounce.
The July contract for sister metal platinum also declined, down $3.60, or 0.2%, to $1,792 an ounce.
Gold is $1,581/oz today. When it hits $2,000, it will be up 26.5%. Let's see how long that takes. - De 3/11/2013 - ANSWER: 7 Years, 5 Months
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