Gold futures log first gain in four sessions
Silver recoups much of Tuesday’s loss; copper contract rallies
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By Myra P. Saefong and Virginia Harrison, MarketWatch
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Gold futures closed higher Wednesday as growing uncertainty surrounding Greece’s debt crisis helped the market score its first gain in four sessions.
Prices finished off the session’s high after a policy statement from the U.S. Federal Reserve offered no surprises. The Fed repeated its intention to hold rates close to zero until mid-2013.
But gold extended its climb into the electronic trading session after the Fed sliced its growth outlook for this year. In a press conference, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke also reiterated that low rates could hold beyond mid-2013.
Gold for December delivery /quotes/zigman/661658 GC1Z -0.56% gained $17.80, or 1%, to settle at $1,729.60 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, pulling back after an earlier high of $1,745.60.
Greek bailout crisis: the reaction
The focus moves to Cannes, France, where the Greek prime minister will meet with German and French leaders ahead of the G-20 meeting to explain his actions. Futures prices had lost about $36 in the past three trading sessions.
In recent electronic trading, December gold was up more than $4 from the Comex close.
The Federal Open Market Committee policy statement was “pretty much as I expected,” said Peter Grant, senior metals analyst at USAGold-Centennial Precious Metals Inc. “Gold remains generally well bid.”
The FOMC left its key interest rate at a historic low range of 0% to 0.25% where it has been since December 2008. Read more about the Fed decision.
Dan Greenhaus, chief global strategist at BTIG LLC, pointed out that the Fed saw its first “dovish dissent” in about five years, with Charles Evans supporting additional policy accommodation at the Fed meeting.
“While much of November’s statement is identical to September’s, the FOMC is clearly inching towards easing further,” he said in a note.
After regular trading closed on Comex, the Fed cut its growth outlook sharply for this year, 2012 and 2013. Read more about the growth outlook.
Ahead of Bernanke’s press conference, Grant said there are “lingering expectations of [a third round of quantitative easing], although I suspect that the October rally in stocks bought the Fed some time on that.”
At the press conference, Bernanke said the Fed is prepared to engage in further accommodation.
Following the Fed news Wednesday, traders will shift their attention to the Group of 20 summit that starts Thursday and Friday’s U.S. payrolls report, said Grant.
For now, “gold continues to ride oscillating fear and relief in the euro zone,” Grant said.
Euro zone turmoil
Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou’s decision earlier this week to put the nation’s latest bailout plan to a public vote inflamed fears about a Greek sovereign-debt default. Read more about the latest Greek turmoil.
The announcement caught other euro-zone nations by surprise, prompting German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy to organize an emergency Wednesday meeting in Cannes, France, on the eve of a summit of the Group of 20 nations.
Reports Wednesday said Greece’s referendum could delay the nation’s next tranche of aid from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund.
Against this backdrop, silver futures for December delivery /quotes/zigman/663010 SI1Z -1.02% added $1.21, or 3.7%, to end at $33.94 an ounce on Comex, after a 4.7% decline in the previous session.
December copper /quotes/zigman/635638 HG1Z -0.63% added 8 cents, or 2.2%, to $3.58 a pound.
January platinum /quotes/zigman/2304885 PL2F -0.60% improved $19.30, or 1.2%, to $1,601.30 an ounce, while palladium /quotes/zigman/2304931 PA1Z -0.68% for December delivery put on $13.65, or 2.2%, to $648.65 an ounce.
Also Wednesday, the dollar index /quotes/zigman/1652083 DXY +0.22% , which tracks the performance of the greenback against a basket of rival currencies, fell to 77.106 from 77.298 late Tuesday, after trading as low as 76.706 earlier. A weaker greenback tends to support investment in dollar-priced commodities as it makes them less expensive to holders of other currencies. Read more on currencies.
/quotes/zigman/661658 
Add GC1Z to portfolio $ 1,755.30
-9.80 -0.56%
Volume: 84,595
Nov. 4, 2011 5:14p
/quotes/zigman/663010
$ 34.15
-0.35 -1.02%
Volume: 28,563
Nov. 4, 2011 5:14p
/quotes/zigman/635638
$ 3.57
-0.02 -0.63%
Volume: 36,303
Nov. 4, 2011 5:13p
/quotes/zigman/2304885
$ 1,637.20
-9.80 -0.60%
Volume: 3,347
Nov. 4, 2011 5:14p
/quotes/zigman/2304931
$ 657.60
-4.50 -0.68%
Volume: 2,820
Nov. 4, 2011 4:47p
/quotes/zigman/1652083
Myra Saefong is a MarketWatch reporter based in San Francisco. Virginia Harrison is a MarketWatch reporter based in Sydney.
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Doubleagle 2 days ago
The fact remains that Gold is up one year ,five years, ten years and will continue to go up in my opinion. Buy what you like, I like Gold and it has out performed EVERYTHING else I own except for Apple stock which I bought for $19 in 1998.
Nothing worse than miserable negative whiners.
Norsky 2 days ago
Doubleagle 2 days ago
It does take ALL kinds, even that kind.
mhteg 2 days ago
http://explainlikeakid.blogspot.com/2011/10/why-is-gold-bad-investment-right-now.html
Doubleagle 2 days ago
Please don't dominate the rap Jack if you got nothing new to say.
Lonetexan 2 days ago
You have got to be kidding. I doubt if one in a 100,000 own any gold except jewelery.
Doubleagle 2 days ago
Very few Americans own bullion. He needs a clue.
IamNotMark 2 days ago
Doubleagle 2 days ago
There is no doubt Gold is in the spotlight these days as it should be. People are tired of being lied to. People are sick of deceit and corruption. Our whole system is based on a promise to provide Gold backing and collateral to back our monetary system. After being lied to so many times people want reassurance so we may have faith in paper promises again.
SamIamTwo 1 day ago
Yeah, like no one could figure that out, eh? It will get worse before it gets better...I can't believe people are day-trading gold...short term thinking.
I blew my chance at buying gold at 38 bucks an ounce when it first came onto the market. You had to have 1M dollars and our office had enough people to establish a cartel...I said nah it won't be worth anything...LOL :bangindheadgif>: