Gold and silver prices closed a bit higher Friday at the end of a rough week for the market. This marked the first gain for gold after four losses in a row. Investors have been dumping gold since last week after the Federal Reserve announced that it could end its stimulus program. The likelihood of the end of the program has made traders worry about inflation and reduced the appeal of gold.
August gold increased $12.10 to close at $1,223.70 per ounce. Gold was still down 9 percent since last Wednesday, when the Fed chairman Bernanke made the announcement. Silver for July delivery went up 91.8 cents to $19.451 per ounce. Silver dropped 3 percent since the announcement by the Fed.
The recovery of gold and silver stopped the talks about how low they will go. The Asian trade gold dropped under $1,200 to its lowest since 2010. This is down more than$200 per ounce since the start of last week. Before its recovery, it looked like gold was on track to post its worst quarter since 1968.
July platinum increased $11.70 to $1,336.90 per ounce. September palladium went up $10 to $660.70 per ounce. July copper dropped 0.2 percent to $3.0505 per pound.
Crop prices fell. Contract for wheat delivered in September dropped 16 cents to $6.5775 per bushel. Corn for December delivery went down 27.5 cents to $5.11 per bushel. Soybeans for November delivery dropped 23.25 cents to $12.52 per bushel.
The energy sector dropped to close the week. Crude oil went down 49 cents to $95.56 per barrel. Heating oil also dropped 1 cent to $2.88 per gallon. Natural gas declined 2 cents to $3.57 per 1,000 cubic feet. Wholesale gasoline increase 1 cent to $2.75 per gallon.
