Gold Advances as U.S. Stimulus Signal Weakens the Dollar

Gold gained for the second time in three sessions amid speculation that the U.S. may continue with stimulus measures, increasing demand for the precious metal as a store of value. Platinum rose to the highest in 12 weeks.

Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago President Charles Evans said the U.S. should keep policy accommodative to support the economy. Gold slid to a four-month low on Jan. 4 after Fed minutes indicated policy makers may end $85 billion in monthly bond purchases sometime this year.

“Today’s comment is definitely supportive,” Scott Gardner, the chief investment officer at Verdmont Capital SA in Panama City, said in a telephone interview. “The Fed’s statement earlier this month took a lot of sheen out of gold.”

Gold futures for February delivery climbed 0.5 percent to settle at $1,669.40 an ounce at 1:36 p.m. on the Comex in New York. Prices advanced 0.7 percent last week, the first gain in seven.

Fed Bank of San Francisco President John Williams said policymakers will probably need to keep buying assets “well into” the second half of the year to combat unemployment that will decline only gradually.

Silver futures for March delivery rose 2.3 percent to $31.11 an ounce in New York.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, platinum futures for April delivery advanced 1.7 percent to $1,658.20 an ounce. Earlier, prices touched $1,665, the highest for a most-active contract since Oct. 18.

Palladium futures for March delivery added 0.3 percent to $703.30 an ounce.

To contact the reporters on this story: Debarati Roy in New York at droy5@bloomberg.net; Nicholas Larkin in London at nlarkin1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Steve Stroth at sstroth@bloomberg.net