SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Gold futures hit a record high Thursday, trading above $1,275 an ounce, and silver kept its rally as a cheaper alternative to bullion.
Gold for December delivery rose $6.60, or 0.5%, to $1,275.40 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. A close around these levels would surpass Tuesday’s record-high settlement price of $1,271.70 an ounce.
“The overall theme I keep hearing is general investor confusion,” said Matt Zeman, a senior strategist at LaSalle Futures Group in Chicago. “People are reluctant to pour money into equities, and (bond) yields are nil so people see gold as an opportunity.”
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December silver added 20 cents, or 1%, to $20.78 an ounce. A finish at that level would mark silver’s highest since March 2008.
A weaker dollar was also doing its part to push precious metals higher. The dollar index /quotes/comstock/11j!i:dxy0 (DXY 81.28, -0.22, -0.27%) , which compares the greenback with a basket of six currencies, retreated 0.3% to 81.27.
Further support came from the day’s murky economic data. Initial jobless claims fell more than expected, but business activity in the Philadelphia area slowed.
Meanwhile, the SPDR Gold Trust /quotes/comstock/11j!i:dxy0 (DXY 81.28, -0.22, -0.27%) , the largest exchange-traded fund backed by gold, recorded inflows of 4 metric tons on Wednesday, the latest day for which statistics are available.
That follows inflows of 6 tons earlier in the week as the fund inches closer to the record 1,320 metric tons set at the end of June. SPDR Gold Trust has 1,294 metric tons in holdings.
U.S. stocks slipped Thursday as both economic conditions in Philadelphia and package-shipper FedEx Corp.’s yearly forecast fell short of expectations. Read more about stocks.
