MADRID (MarketWatch) — Gold prices shot higher on Friday, barely hanging onto a weekly gain in a market thinned out by the Christmas holiday.
Gold for February delivery GCG5, +1.88% surged $24, or 2%, to $1,197.40 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange in Globex electronic trading. The contract is up just 0.1% in a holiday-shortened week after a big selloff on Monday. Silver for March delivery SIH5, +3.18% gained 50 cents, or 3.2%, to $16.22 an ounce.
Analysts said investors who were buying saw gold as a bargain and were taking advantage of thin volumes.
“The weaker dollar probably attracted some bids, but volumes are really low and this rally might not last once everyone is back from the holidays,” said a precious metals trader in Singapore told Yahoo News.
Elsewhere platinum for January delivery PLF5, +1.79% jumped $19.60, or 1.7%, to $1,197.40 an ounce. Palladium for March delivery PAH5, +1.02% rose $7.75, or 1%, at $815.55 an ounce.
High-grade copper for March delivery HGH5, +0.07% was flat at just over $2.85 a pound.
