Gold holds steady while other metals push higher
NEW YORK — Gold prices are holding steady, but other metals are higher as investors parse a mixed bag of earnings news and economic reports.
A government report showing a bigger-than-expected jump in wholesale inflation numbers in June helped support metals prices.
The increase, largely driven by a surge in energy prices last month, was surprising because it showed that costs increased despite the economy being weak, renewing concerns about inflation. Investors often use gold as a hedge against inflation, and other precious metals sometimes benefit as well.
Investors are still leery of making big bets on risky assets, analysts say, until they have more clarity on the economy. They are hoping hoping to learn more from the flood of earnings reports coming in over the next few weeks, but so far the reports have been mixed.
On Tuesday, both Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Johnson & Johnson beat Wall Street’s estimates, but Dell Inc. and CSX Corp. issued disappointing outlooks.
Though gold has lost some of its luster as a safe-haven investment, there’s still enough uncertainty about the economy to keep a floor under prices, analysts say.
“Investors are not buying as much gold as they did earlier this year, but at the same time they aren’t selling,” said Carlos Sanchez, an analyst with CPM Group in New York.
Gold for August delivery inched up 30 cents to $922.80 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Some weakness in the dollar also helped support prices for commodities Tuesday. The dollar fell against the Japanese yen and the British pound in afternoon trading, making commodities cheaper for foreign buyers.
September silver rose 7 cents to $12.8550 an ounce, while July platinum gained $17.30 to $1,128.40 an ounce.
September copper futures rose 7.6 cents to $2.2990 a pound. Aluminum prices gained 2.4 percent.
Prices for commodities have been beaten down over the past few weeks after rising sharply this spring, as investors question just how strong and quick the economy’s turnaround will be in the face of record unemployment and sagging consumer confidence.
On Wall Street, stocks finished slightly higher after fluctuating in a narrow range throughout much of the day, as doubts about the economy kept the market in check.
Oil prices reversed early gains and slipped further below $60 a barrel. Worries about the strength of the economy’s recovery have kept crude prices hovering around $60 a barrel for the last few days, following a big drop from an eight-month high of just over $73 on June 30.
Light, sweet crude for August delivery slipped 17 cents to $59.52 a barrel.
In other Nymex trading, gasoline futures rose less than a penny to $1.6466 a gallon, while heating oil futures added 0.81 cent to $1.5119 a gallon.
Among soft commodities, September wheat futures fell 12.75 cents to $5.30 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade, while corn for September delivery rose 6.75 cents to $3.3850 a bushel.
August soybeans jumped 16 cents to $10.3450 a bushel.
Prices for cotton, cocoa, sugar and coffee also finished higher.
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