US gold ends up after topping $1,060 on weak dollar

NEW YORK, Oct 12 (Reuters) - U.S. gold futures ended higher
on Monday after briefly rising above $1,060 an ounce as the
dollar's weakness increased the appeal of bullion as a hedge
against a falling U.S. currency.

For the latest detailed report, click on [GOL/].

GOLD

* Most-active December gold futures GCZ9 settled up $8.90
at $1,057.50 an ounce on the COMEX division of the New York
Mercantile Exchange.

* Ranged from $1,048 to $1,060.50.

* Last Thursday, December scaled a record high $1,062.70 an
ounce. The contract had risen about 4 percent last week.

* Gold continued to closely track currency market
movements. The metal is used as a hedge against depreciating
value of dollar-denominated assets due to a weaker greenback.

* The dollar dropped to session lows against the euro due
to concerns about the greenback's status as the preeminent
reserve currency. [USD/]

* Gold is currently used as a hedge against weakening
currency rather than an inflation hedge, as central banks
worldwide race to devaluate their currencies - Neal Greenberg,
trader with New Jersey-based TraderNeal Trading.

* Continued dollar weakness as well as a falling pound
sterling underpin gold and the metals complex - George Gero,
vice president of RBC Capital Markets Global Futures.

* Noncommercial net longs in COMEX gold futures rose to an
all-time high 239,668 lots in the week ended Oct. 6, up 3.6
percent from the previous week - U.S. Commodity Futures Trading
Commission data. [ID:nSP65257]

* Open interest in COMEX gold futures market at above
500,000 lots. It jumped 2,326 lots to 502,513 lots as of Oct.
9. <NYMMTLFUT/VOI>

* High liquidity measured by open interest attracted
investors - Gero.

* Oil prices rose nearly $2 to over $73 a barrel on
economic optimism.

* Gold-to-oil ratio at 14.41, down from the previous
session's 14.60.

* COMEX estimated 1 p.m. volume at 63,429 lots.

* Spot gold was at $1,054.95 an ounce at 2:32 p.m. EDT
(1832 GMT), against its previous finish of $1,048.25 quoted
late in New York.

* London afternoon gold fix XAUFIX= was at $1,058.75.

SILVER

* December silver SIZ9 ended up 13 cents at $17.820 an
ounce, down with gold.

* Ranged from $17.710 to $17.990.

* COMEX estimated 1 p.m. volume at 15,252 lots.

* Spot silver XAG= was at $17.73, versus its previous
finish of $17.67 an ounce.

* London silver fix XAGFIX= at $17.89 an ounce.

PLATINUM

* January platinum PLF0 finished up $7.90 at $1,347.30 an
ounce on general economic optimism.

* Spot platinum XPT= was at $1,337, compared with its
previous finish of $1,332.

PALLADIUM

* December palladium PAZ9 closed up $6.05, or 1.9
percent, at $329.80 an ounce on strong investment demand.

* Spot palladium XPD= was at $323.50, against its
previous close of $317.50.

Close Change Pct 2008 YTD

Chg Close % Chg
US gold GCZ9 1057.50 8.9 0.8 884.3 19.6
US silver SIZ9 17.820 0.130 0.7 11.295 57.8
US platinum PLF0 1347.30 7.90 0.6 941.50 43.1
US palladium PAZ9 329.80 6.05 1.9 188.70 74.8
Prices at 2:33 p.m. EDT (1833 GMT)
Gold XAU= 1054.90 6.65 0.6 878.20 20.1
Silver XAG= 17.73 0.06 0.3 11.30 56.9
Platinum XPT= 1337.00 5.00 0.4 924.50 44.6
Palladium XPD= 324.50 7.000 2.2 184.50 75.9
Gold Fix XAUFIX= 1058.75 6.75 0.6 836.50 26.6
Silver Fix XAGFIX= 17.89 26.00 1.5 14.76 21.2
Platinum Fix XPTFIX= 1340.00 7.00 0.5 1529 -12.4
Palladium FixXPDFIX= 324.00 3.00 0.9 365.0 -11.2
(Reporting by Frank Tang; Editing by Christian Wiessner)