Gold continues its upward trend

SINGAPORE: The precious yellow metal rose nearly one percent on Monday while speculators bought platinum on dips.

Analysts said, expectations of further interest rate cuts in the United States and record high crude oil that raised fears of inflation, were likely to sustain investors' interest in gold, which may find good support around $960 an ounce.

Gold futures for April delivery on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange added $7.1 an ounce to $981.4, but were off a record high of $995.2 it hit on March 5.

Gold roared to an historical high of $991.90 an ounce on March 6 before funds cashed in. The metal has gained nearly 20 percent in 2008, on the top of a 32 percent rise last year. Gold rose to $979.60/980.40 an ounce from $972.60/973.40 late in New York on Friday, after it swung between a low of $969.40 and a high at $988.00.

Silver rose to $20.33/20.38 an ounce from $20.11/20.16 an ounce. Spot palladium rose to $495/504 an ounce from $485/490 an ounce.

Spot platinum firmed to $2,068/2,078 an ounce from $2,020/2,030 an ounce in New York on bargain hunting, after a dip to $2,020, which matched Friday's 3-week low.

Platinum was moving away from a record high of $2,290 an ounce on March 4 on news that mines in South Africa, the world's top platinum producer, would get more electricity supply.

The benchmark platinum futures contract for February 2009 delivery on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange ended by its daily 300-yen limit to 6,707 yen a gram because of a surge in the yen.