4. MCX Silver price Will Reach Till 51,000 Soon this month.
Gold rose to a seven-week high on Monday as spreading unrest in the Middle East underscored its appeal as a safe-haven asset, while silver and palladium prices hit historic highs on expectations for growing industrial demand.
Gold
added to a weekly gain of nearly 3% last week and was poised for
further upside on fresh news from North Africa and the Middle East,
where revolutions which deposed the presidents of Tunisia and Egypt
have inspired protests across the region, threatening the grip of
long-entrenched autocratic leaders.
Spot
gold inched up 0.5% to USD1,396.10 per ounce as of 0217 GMT, its
highest since January 4, and compared with USD1,388.58 an ounce late
in New York on Friday.
Bullion
has risen for five straight sessions, its longest winning streak
since September. US markets are closed on Monday for a holiday.
US
gold futures for April delivery also climbed 0.6% to USD 1,396.60 per
ounce, compared to Friday's settlement at USD 1,388.60.
"With
the unrest in the Middle East and North Africa, dealers couldn't
leave for a long weekend with short positions, and this reflects
investor sentiment for flight to safety," said Yuichi Ikemizu,
Tokyo branch manager for Standard Bank, adding that gold prices were
likely to keep inching higher.
Spot
gold may rise to its Jan. 3 high of USD 1,423.57 per ounce as it has
ignored bearish signals and continued to shoot up, says Wang Tao, a
Reuters market analyst for commodities and energy technicals.
The
world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, the SPDR Gold
Trust, said holdings fell to 1,223.098 tonnes by February 20, its
lowest in nine months, from 1,224.008 tonnes on February 15.
Traders
said there was slightly higher demand for gold bars in the Middle
East, mainly due to the unrest.
Expectations
for growing industrial demand on an improving world economy and a
rally in the overall precious market also helped hoist silver to its
highest level since 1980, surpassing the previous 31-year high marked
on Friday.
But
Ikemizu said there were signs that silver may peak out.
A
deepening backwardation -- which means futures are cheaper than spot
prices -- reflects tightness in the market. The gold/silver ratio --
the number of ounces of silver needed to buy an ounce of gold -- fell
to its lowest in 13 years at under 43 on Friday as silver prices
outperformed, which means silver has become more expensive relative
to gold.
"The
silver market may be close to seeing a squeeze," Ikemizu said.
Spot
silver rose to a high of USD 33.08 an ounce as of 0239 GMT, its
highest since 1980.
Holdings
in the world's largest silver-backed exchange-traded fund, iShares
Silver Trust, rose to 10,519.05 tonnes by February 18 from 10,438.56
tonnes on February 17.
Platinum
gained 0.7% to USD 1,846 an ounce while palladium hit a 10-year high
of USD 855.50 in early trade.
Traders
said platinum and palladium may see further gains on a solid demand
outlook and supply concerns.
