Gold prices hit another record high; oil declines

Gold prices hit a record price for a second day in a row, rising to $1,049.70 per troy ounce in New York while December contracts ended floor trade at $4.70 higher on the session to trade at $1,044.40 per troy ounce.

Other precious metals also saw gains as December silver was up 21 cents to $17.50 per troy ounce and January platinum was $2.40 higher to $1,327.70 per troy ounce, while in late morning trade in New York December palladium gained $5.70 to $316 per troy ounce.

Meanwhile copper prices declined while other base metals saw mostly modest gains.

December copper fell a cent to $2.78 per pound in New York while three-month copper dropped $21 to $6,095 per tonne on the London Metal Exchange after going as low as $6,040 per tonne earlier in the session on continuing demand concerns and another gain in LME stockpiles.

Elsewhere, lead added $5 to $2,155 per tonne while zinc was up $14 to $1,935 per tonne, aluminium was $23 higher to $1,845 per tonne, tin added $25 to $14,700 per tonne and nickel saw a bigger advance as it gained $470 to $18,600 per tonne.

Crude oil prices were lower Wednesday in the wake of new inventories data from the US Energy Information Administration and on a stronger US dollar.

While crude oil inventories were down by 1 million barrels instead of the expected 2 million barrel gain, gasoline stockpiles were up 2.94 million barrels, much more of a gain than had been anticipated, and distillates in storage gained 700,000 barrels on the week, also more of a gain than expected.

At about an hour before the close of floor trade, November contracts for West Texas Intermediate crude were down $1.36 to $69.52 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while at last report Brent crude for November delivery was $1.68 cents lower to $66.88 per barrel on the ICE Futures Europe exchange in London.

With demand for gasoline still so weak that one refiner announced yesterday that it will close a refinery in New Jersey at least temporarily, Nymex November gasoline futures fell 6 cents to $1.71 per gallon in afternoon trade while November heating oil was down by nearly 4 cents to $1.77 per gallon.

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