--Comex December gold touches intraday record at $1,901.70 in after-market trade --Hopes that Fed will hint at more stimulus buoy gold
--SPDR Gold Shares ETF outpaces value of SPDR S&P 500 ETF as investors flock to gold
By Tatyana Shumsky
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--Gold breached $1,900 in after-market trading as strong demand for a store of value pushed prices to fresh records.
Gold has marched higher for six consecutive trading days, setting new records for four consecutive trading days including Monday. Gold continued making gains after Comex floor trading finished Monday, with the most actively traded contract, for December delivery, touching a record $1,901.70 a troy ounce.
"This is a raging bull market," said Ralph Preston, analyst with Heritage West Financial.
The December contract had gained $39.70, or 2.1%, to settle at a record $1,891.90 a troy ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Thinly traded August-delivery gold settled at a record $1,888.70 a troy ounce, up $39.80, or 2.2%, after touching an intraday record of $1,895.00.
Gold's gains come amid growing speculation the U.S. won't be able to resist another round of stimulus and broader worries about the global economy.
Investors are eagerly awaiting Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's speech at an economic symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyo., on Friday. Last year, the Fed chairman raised the idea of further monetary stimulus in his speech, and many investors are buying gold in hopes of similar hints this year.
"Should Bernanke put a damper on [stimulus] expectations, the yellow metal could well experience the correction that potential investors have been impatiently awaiting," said Edel Tuly, a strategist with UBS.
While some investors are buying gold to hedge against inflation, which is likely to arise from another round of stimulus, others are worried the U.S. economy will slip into recession without such help and are purchasing gold to hedge against possible losses in other assets.
Gold prices are also rising amid renewed appetite for a hedge against political uncertainty in the Middle East, where a civil conflict in Libya looks headed for a conclusion. Rebels seized control of most of the nation's capital, Tripoli, over the weekend. The whereabouts of Libyan leader, Col. Moammar Gadhafi, are unknown.
Investors have voted with their dollars as the cloudy prospects of the U.S. economy and rising stock-market volatility cause more funds to be channeled toward gold.
The value of SPDR Gold Shares (GLD), the world's largest physical-gold-backed exchange-traded fund, surpassed that of SPDR S&P 500 (SPY) ETF Friday. Net assets for SPDR Gold Shares totalled $76.67 billion as of Friday, outpacing the $74.38 billion of the S&P ETF.
"While investors may be using gold to tactically hedge against current market concerns, there is a long-term strategic case for gold in all market cycles," said Jim Ross, senior managing director and global head of SPDR ETFs at State Street Global Advisors, the marketing agent for SPDR Gold Shares.
Platinum settled at a three-year high amid spill-over buying as investors seek to diversify their holdings of precious metals. Platinum's success, in particular, was also aided by hopes of an early recovery in Japan's automotive production, which was stalled by a massive earthquake and tsunami earlier this year, Gero said.
Platinum is widely used in making car exhaust filters, known as catalytic converters.
Platinum for October delivery, the most actively traded contract, settled at $1,905.70 a troy ounce, up $30.80 or 1.6%, after touching an intraday high of $1,906.80.
Settlements (ranges include open-outcry and electronic trading):
London PM Gold Fix: $1,877.50; previous PM $1,848.00
Dec gold $1,891.90, up $39.70; Range $1,858.00-$1,899.40
Sep silver $43.325, up 89.3 cents; Range $42.475-$44.090
Oct platinum $1,905.70, up $30.80; Range $1,881.20-$1,909.90
Sep palladium $765.10, up $16.30; Range $743.50-$766.80
Poster Comment:
Forex is currently quoting $1911.46
