Gold surges beyond $5500 with silver, copper also hitting fresh highs

(Sharecast News) - Gold hurtled past $5,500 an ounce on Thursday, driven by a weak dollar and political uncertainty while the price of silver and copper also hit new highs. The precious yellow metal hit its new mark only three days after passing $5,000 for the first time and has risen almost by a third this month alone.

Meanwhile, silver hit $120 an ounce for the first time, taking gains so far this year to 65%, before settling back to $117.

Investors are running to de-risk their holdings as increased geopolitical and economic tensions make equities a less certain bet. A weaker dollar, sparked by US President Donald Trump's comments that he was happy with the currency's decline, also boosted the gold price, sending shares in miners such as Glencore, Antofagasta, Rio Tinto, Anglo American and Fresnillo higher.

The weak dollar also helped drive the copper price to a record high, with the benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange jumping almost 8% to $14,125 a tonne, before slipping back slightly to $13,972.

"This has all the hallmarks of a speculative squeeze that is increasing disorderly, volatile and dangerous. We know the backdrop and solid fundamentals to this trade - debasement and rush to hard assets etc - but the moves are highly unusual," said Saxo analyst Neil Wilson.

"The volatility can be self-sustaining as market makers become reluctant to take and hold positions, leading to thinner liquidity and greater volatility."

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com