Finance

Finance

Gold continues to make history

16 November 2009 11:37 (UTC +04:00)

Bakuâ€“ APA-Economics. Gold rose to a record in London and New York as investors purchased the precious metal as an alternative to a slumping dollar, Bloomberg reported.

The Dollar Index, a six-currency gauge of the greenbackâ€™s strength, fell for a second day as better-than-forecast economic growth in Japan added to signs of a world rebound from recession. Asian leaders pledged to maintain stimulus measures until growth is â€œdurable,â€ reducing the dollarâ€™s allure as a refuge. Bullion and the currency usually move inversely.

Immediate-delivery bullion rose as much as $14.51, or 1.3 percent, to $1,133.20 an ounce and traded at $1,131.13 by 9:47 a.m. in London. The metal added 2.2 percent last week. December gold futures gained 1.3 percent to $1,131.30 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchangeâ€™s Comex division after earlier reaching $1,133.50.

Holdings in the SPDR Gold Trust, the biggest exchange- traded fund backed by bullion, fell 0.61 metric tons to 1,113.83 tons on Nov. 13, its Web site showed. The holdings reached a record 1,134 tons on June 1.
Among other precious metals for immediate delivery in London, platinum gained as much as 1.8 percent to $1,418.25 an ounce, the highest price since Sept. 4, 2008, and was last at $1,413.25. Palladium climbed as much as 2.5 percent to a 15- month high of $364.75 an ounce and last traded at $362. Silver advanced 2 percent to $17.785 an ounce.