Gold futures climbed higher Tuesday as simmering geopolitical tensions and the possibility of fresh European monetary stimulus supported price levels. Gold for December delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange was last up $8.90 at $1,287.80 an ounce. Trade has ranged from $1,275.70 to $1,291.70. “Gold is stronger and we shall give credit to the understanding that the European Central Bank is indeed about to embark upon far more expansive monetary policies in the weeks and months ahead,� Dennis Gartman, editor of the Gartman Letter, said. On Friday, ECB President Mario Draghi surprised the the markets by deviating from his prepared statement at Jackson Hole, Wyoming, in order to hint that a new injection of stimulus might be necessary to combat persistently low inflation. “If this period of low inflation were to last for a prolonged period of time, the risk to price stability would increase,� said Draghi, who added that the ECB is willing to “use all the available instruments needed to ensure price stability over the medium term.� Meanwhile, yesterday’s data was mostly disappointing, sales of new single-family houses fell 2.4 percent in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 412,000, which is the lowest level since March, the Commerce Department said on Monday. The Flash Services PMI in the US came in below expected as well, with the figure at 58.5 lower than the consensus forecast of 59.2. Later today will be the release of US consumer confidence data, core durable goods orders and the monthly S&P/Case-Shiller home price index. In the wider-markets, the dollar remains stout at 1.3195 against the euro, while Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC-40 were last up 0.17 percent and 0.67 percent respectively. On Monday, the S&P 500 broke 2000 for the first time ever. “Despite numerous negative news reports, the gold price has climbed to around $1,290 this morning – presumably on the back of the many sources of geopolitical crisis. The price is still facing headwind from the firm US dollar that continues to trade at around an eleven-month high against the euro,� Commerzbank said. The crisis in Ukraine is still at the forefront of investor minds, with ongoing violence in Gaza also making some investors nervous and thus fuelling demand for safe-haven assets, such as gold. As for the other precious metals, Comex silver for September delivery was last up 14.7 cents at $19.505 an ounce. Trade has ranged from $19.305 to $19.580. Platinum futures for October delivery on the Nymex were up $5.40 at $1,423.80 an ounce, while the most-actively traded palladium contract was at $884.65 an ounce, down $5.10.

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