Gold Falls Below $950, Silver Plummets

Gold fell Thursday for the fourth straight day and closed near $940 an ounce. Silver tumbled, stocks stumbled and oil rallied. For the numbers, New York silver, gold and platinum futures lost 6.7 percent, 2.5 percent and 0.7 percent, respectively.

The Dow fell 1.2 percent, the S&P declined 1.6 percent and the Nasdaq lost 2.4 percent.

April crude-oil surged for the second day, climbing $2.72, or 6.4 percent, to close at $45.22 a barrel. AAA said the average price for regular unleaded gasoline fell nine-tenths of a cent to $1.882 a gallon.

March silver plummeted 92.5 cents to close to $12.95 an ounce.

April platinum fell $7.00 to $1,052.10 an ounce

Gold for April delivery declined $23.70 to end at $942.50 an ounce.

"The public has been buying gold very steadily in ETFs and coins and that seems to have petered out," Tom Hartmann, a commodity analyst at AltaVest Worldwide Trading Inc. in Mission Viejo, California, was quoted on Bloomberg.com. "A lot of buyers are waiting for a better price before coming back into the market."

"Equities on the rise and a U.S. dollar flirting with the 88-level on the index are keeping gold in check for the moment," wrote Jon Nadler, senior analyst at Kitco Bullion Dealers.

Gold, considered a hedge during times of high inflation and economic uncertainty, tends to follow oil and move opposite to the U.S. dollar. A rising greenback makes dollar-denominated commodities, like bullion, more expensive for holders of other world currencies.

In spot trading, the London afternoon gold-fixing price — a benchmark for gold traded directly between big institutions — stood at $936.50 an ounce. London silver and platinum were at $13.48 and $1,058.00, respectively.

Check out additional market resources at Live Spots, the Silver Coin Melt Calculator, U.S. Mint Collector Bullion Price Guide, and the Inflation Adjuster.