NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--With February options set to expire Monday, gold futures have set a new record high as participants buy back previously sold positions and enter into new long trades, market watchers said.
At 10:52 a.m. EST, most-active February gold was $10.80 higher at $921.50 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. As of its last trade at 10:18 a.m., thinly traded nearby January gold was up $11.50 at $922, an all-time high for a front month contract on the exchange.
Meanwhile, February gold at the Chicago Board of Trade was up $11.40 at $922.10.
"We're seeing new longs coming into the market," a New York floor contact said.
Further, as February options are expiring, participants are trying to keep February gold futures contracts above $920 an ounce before they roll into April contracts, he said.
The options expiration is helping short covering as some foreign miners are trying to cover options trades, said George Gero, vice president with RBC Capital Markets Global Futures.
But Gero cautioned that the gold market is waiting for Fed and Bank of England actions and "continued strength ... may weaken after first notice day."
First notice day for February gold futures is Thursday.
-By Matt Whittaker, Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-5959; matt.whittaker@dowjones.com
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