Gold and silver continue to shine

Prices rise for second consecutive day

After dropping for two straight days, precious metals shone for second straight day on Thursday, 12 March, 2009. Prices rose today as buyers were back in action who had been refraining since quite some time due to the overall gloomy economic conditions.

Generally, a stronger dollar pressures demand for dollar-denominated commodities, such as crude oil and gold, which become more expensive for holders of other currencies and also vice versa.

On Thursday, Comex Gold for April delivery rose $13.3 (1.5%) to close at $924 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Last Tuesday, gold had dropped below $900 for first time in two months. Last week, the yellow metal remained almost unchanged. For the month of February, gold ended higher by 7.4%. For January, 2009, gold had gained 3.9%. Year to date, gold prices are higher by 4.7%.

On 17 March, 2008 prices had skyrocketed to a high of $1,034/ounce. But prices have dropped somewhat (8.9%) since then.

On Thursday, Comex silver futures for May delivery rose 14.3 cents (1.1%) to end at $12.943 an ounce. Last week, silver rose 1.7%. In February, 2009, silver had rose 4.3% after climbing 14% in January. Year to date, silver has climbed 12.4% this year. For 2008, silver had lost 24%.