By Claudia Assis, MarketWatch
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Another day, another record for gold. Gold futures made another attempt to top $1,300 an ounce Thursday, breaking a new high in the process.
Gold for December (GCZ10 1,293, +0.40, +0.03%) delivery added 70 cents, or 0.1%, to $1,292.90 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold on Wednesday closed at a record $1,292.10 an ounce.
“Prices have gone from being driven by short-term panic of a major global credit default to medium-term fears about the pace and strength of the global recovery and inflation,” analysts at Barclays said in a note to clients Thursday.
Silver futures wavered in early trading, a day after settling at their best in 30 years. Silver for December delivery (SIZ10 2,103, -3.00, -0.14%) was flat at $21.06 an ounce.
Copper (HGZ10 357.60, +1.10, +0.31%) tracked gold, with the December contract rising a penny, or 0.4%, to $3.58 a pound and hitting a fresh five-month high. Platinum (PLF11 1,635, -1.70, -0.10%) for January delivery, now the most active contract, declined $1.10 to $1.635.90 an ounce.
U.S. stocks opened lower after jobless claims disappointed.
