By Claudia Assis, MarketWatch
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Gold futures gained Monday on continuing concerns about Europe’s sovereign-debt crisis and as investors eschewed investments considered riskier, such as U.S. stocks.
Gold for August delivery GC1Q +0.80% added $13.20, or 0.9%, to $1,554.80 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gaining momentum as U.S. equities opened lower. It earlier traded as high as $1,557.20 an ounce, according to FactSet Research.
The Financial Times, citing unnamed sources, reported late Sunday that European leaders were willing to accept a default as part of the solution for Greece’s sovereign-debt crisis.
European leaders are scheduled to meet later Monday to discuss the crisis, ahead of a regularly scheduled meeting in Brussels.
Fears of a default for Greece supported the dollar, which is generally negative for commodities. For gold, however, the concerns surrounding a potential default for Greece trumped the higher U.S. currency.
The dollar index, which compares the U.S. unit with a basket of six currencies, traded up at 75.908 compared with 75.179 late Friday in North American trade.
Most metals and other commodities such as oil traded lower Monday. Silver, however, tracked gold higher, with the September contract SI1U +0.14% adding 6 cents, or 0.2%, to $36.61 an ounce.
September copper HG1U -0.75% declined 3 cents, or 0.7%, to $4.38 a pound.
