By Glenys Sim March 16 (Bloomberg) -- Platinum’s ratio to gold climbed to the highest level since Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. filed for bankruptcy in September 2008 as investment demand increased. An ounce of platinum bought 1.4642 ounces of gold late yesterday, the most in 18 months. The ratio averaged 1.24 last year and soared to 2.38 in May 2008, the highest level since 2001, according to Bloomberg calculations. The metal, used mainly in catalytic converters, has climbed 11 percent this year, outperforming gold’s 1.4 percent gain, as the start of the ETFS Platinum Trust on the NYSE Arca stock exchange in January boosted purchases. “Fundamentally, platinum looks better than gold,” said Steven Zhu, head trader at Shanghai Tonglian Futures Co. “When the economy recovers, auto demand recovers. The launch of new exchange traded funds linked to platinum has also greatly increased investment demand.” New car registrations in the European Union rose 3 percent in February to 974,346 vehicles, led by increases in the U.K., Spain and Italy, the Brussels-based European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association said in a statement today. In South Africa, which produces more than 75 percent of the world’s platinum, state-owned power utility Eskom Holdings Ltd. is struggling to fund a $62 billion expansion needed to meet rising demand. The Congress of South African Trade Unions, the nation’s largest labor federation, also plans to strike against a government decision to allow Eskom to increase tariffs. “Given our expectation of tight supply, any production problems due to energy cutbacks could potentially trigger a sharp price rally,” Stefan Graber, a Credit Suisse Group AG analyst, wrote in a note today. Platinum for immediate delivery advanced as much as 0.4 percent today to $1,629 an ounce, the highest price since Jan. 21, and traded at $1,623.57 at 5:16 p.m. in Singapore. Gold gained 0.3 percent to $1,112.25 an ounce. --Editor: James Poole To contact the reporter on this story: Glenys Sim in Singapore at gsim4@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: James Poole at jpoole4@Bloomberg.net Related Articles

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