1st LD Writethru: Gold futures extend gains to third successive session
Xinhua, October 7, 2015 Adjust font size:
Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange extended gains on Tuesday, logging its highest settlement since Sept. 24.
The most active gold contract for December delivery closed up 8.80 U.S. dollars, or 0.77 percent, to settle at 1,146.40 dollars per ounce.
Analysts said that gold futures continued to find some support from recent soft U.S. data, including the lower-than-expected job data released Friday, as investors believed that the Federal Reserve will delay interest rates hike to next year.
Additionally, gold also benefited from a lower U.S. dollar, which fell against other major currencies Tuesday as the country's downbeat economic data lowered market expectation for an interest-rate hike by year-end.
On the economic front, the United States' international trade deficit in goods and services increased to 48.3 billion dollars in August from revised 41.8 billion dollars in July, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday. Analysts noted that gold continued to rise after the data released on Tuesday morning.
Silver for December delivery added 27.60 cents, or 1.76 percent, to close at 15.984 dollars per ounce, while platinum for October delivery gained 21.80 dollars, or 2.39 percent, to close at 934.70 dollars per ounce. Endit