Gold Hits 3-Month High; Silver Extends Win Streak to Six Sessions

San Francisco (Feb 12)   Gold advanced for a fifth straight session on Tuesday — the longest rally since August 2012 reports Bloomberg News, and closed at a more than three-month high.

Gold for April delivery gained $15.10, or 1.2%, to end at $1,289.80 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement was the highest since gold prices ended at $1,308.50 an ounce at Nov. 7.

"Yellen’s comments have been right down the middle of the road," MarketWatch quoted Brien Lundin, editor of Gold Newsletter, adding that "gold was already trading nicely higher before her testimony began, largely on the back of a weaker dollar and strong Chinese demand."

"Apparently all the gold market needed was an absence of damaging remarks from Yellen, as the price continued to strengthen as she talked," he said. "This indicates that underlying bullish posture for gold is strong."

Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen testified Tuesday before the U.S. House Financial Services Committee. Her stay the course remarks were supportive of gold, opined analysts.

"Acknowledgment by Yellen that more needs to be done to restore the labor market is helping gold," Frances Hudson, a strategist at Standard Life in Edinburgh, which oversees $294 billion said in a telephone interview according to Bloomberg News. "While she said that tapering will continue, she made it clear that it’s not on any pre-set course."

Gold traded from a low of $1,273.50 to a high of $1,294.40.

Extending its winning streak to six straight sessions, silver for March delivery turned up 4 cents, or 0.2%, to settle at $20.15 an ounce. The precious metal ranged from $19.92 to $20.29.

In PGM futures prices on Tuesday:

• April platinum added $1.90, or 0.1%, to $1,387.80 an ounce, trading between $1,380 and $1,394. Platinum has gained for four consecutive sessions.

• Palladium for March delivery dipped 40 cents, or less than 0.1%, to $716.35 an ounce, ranging from $714.20 to $723.