Gold Strides Above $950, Hits Two-Month High

Gold rose for the third consecutive day on Thursday, striding confidently above $950 an ounce to a high not seen since March. Platinum and silver also ended with gains while crude-oil prices and U.S. stocks fell.

In New York trading futures for bullion:

• Silver for July delivery rose 16.5 cents, or 1.2 percent, to $14.445 an ounce.

• Gold for June jumped $13.80, or 1.5 percent, to $951.20 an ounce — the highest level for the yellow metal since March 23.

• July platinum climbed $9.20, or 0.8 percent, to $1,154.70 an ounce.

"The fact equity markets appear to have stalled and inflation fears are on the increase should give gold increased upward momentum," James Moore, an analyst at TheBullionDesk.com, was quoted on Bloomberg.

In spot bullion, the benchmark London gold fix price fell $2.00 to $937.50 an ounce. Silver lost 6 cents to $14.23 an ounce. Platinum was fixed $6.00 lower to $1,138.00.

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.

Oil and gasoline prices

After oil prices soared $1.94 and to a six-month high Wednesday on concerns over inventories, crude-oil gave back nearly a buck of the gain on Thursday. New York crude-oil for July delivery fell 99 cents, or 1.6 percent, to $61.05 a barrel.

Prices at the pump, however, continued to rise. The average price for unleaded gasoline jumped another 2.8 cents to $2.362 a gallon, according to AAA. The price is 8.1 cents higher than a week ago and 30 cents higher than last month.

U.S. Stocks

In stock news, Edward Krudy from Reuters wrote Thursday that "U.S. stocks slid in a broad sell-off on Thursday as investors, concerned about the U.S. budget deficit, exited dollar-denominated assets across the board."

For the number, the Dow Jones industrial average lost 129.91 points, or 1.54 percent, to 8,292.13. The S&P 500 Index declined 15.14 points, or 1.68 percent, to 888.33. The Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 32.59 points, or 1.89 percent, to 1,695.25.

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