DY: Gold prices edge up as economic concerns linger
LONDON: Gold edged up on Thursday, extending gains from the day before as ongoing global economic concerns enhanced bullion’s appeal as a hedge against market uncertainty, and physical buying in India also offered support.
Gold traded at $892.8/894 per ounce at 1156 GMT from $889.15 late in New York on Wednesday, up 0.4 percent. It rose 0.8 percent in the previous session.
Holdings of the SPDR Gold Trust have stayed at 1,105.98 tonnes, after investor outflows early this week reached their biggest since early September. A 44 percent surge in the SPDR’s holdings since the start of the year had helped underpin gold prices, but the last increase was nearly a month ago.
Gold-backed exchange-traded funds saw inflows of 456 tonnes in the first quarter of 2009, against a total 321 tonnes for the whole of the previous year, the World Gold Council said on Thursday. Gold last closed above $900 on April 2 and fell as low as $864.00 on Friday, its lowest since Jan. 23. Among other precious metals, silver traded at $12.40/12.46 an ounce, platinum was at $1,178/1,186 an ounce and palladium traded at $230.5/235.5 an ounce.
Meanwhile, copper slipped four percent before tracking back on Thursday, as a weaker dollar and rising equity markets provided support despite the bleak economic and demand backdrop.
Copper for three-month delivery on the London Metal Exchange traded at $4,545 a tonne in rings from $4,540 at the close on Wednesday and up from a two-week low of $4,360.
Aluminium rose $6 to $1,464, despite LME inventories in the metal used in transport and packaging jumping 17,000 tonnes to a new record of 3.67 million tonnes. On Wednesday, aluminium cancelled warrants rose to 62,250 compared with 10,575 tonnes on Jan. 12.
Steel making ingredient nickel traded at $11,525 from $11,520 while zinc traded at $1,450 a tonne from $1,460.
Volatile tin edged up to $12,510 in rings from $12,150 and battery material lead was at $1,457 versus $1,470. Also at a premium are tin and lead, above $260 and $7 respectively, mainly because of dominant positions holding more than 80 and 90 percent of cash warrants on LME stocks. reuters
