RE: gold and copper rise- didn't postGold rises above $890 on worries over GM, banks
By Moming Zhou, MarketWatch
Last update: 11:23 a.m. EDT April 13, 2009
Comments: 77
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Gold futures rose above $890 an ounce Monday, as concerns about bank earnings and possible bankruptcy for General Motors Corp. led some investors back to the precious metal following its third straight weekly loss.
Bargain-hunting also helped gold move higher, analysts said.
Gold for June delivery rose $12.30, or 1.4%, to $895.60 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The less actively traded front-month April contract rose $9.70, or 1.1%, to $891.90. The front-month contract ended last week down 1.5%.
"Every time we have a major sell-off in gold, we have bargain-hunting by people who believe there is an opportunity" that prices will bounce back, said George Gero, a precious-metals trader for RBC Capital Markets. "The market has absorbed most of the selling pressure in the past weekend."
Financial firms, which stand at the heart of the global credit crunch and economic downturn, have led an equity rebound over the past five weeks. But if bank earnings disappoint, stock rallies could stall, analysts said. Lower stocks tend to raise gold's investment appeal.
In other metals Monday, May copper rose 2.7% to $2.126 a pound. Copper has rallied nearly 50% this year and is standing at the highest level in more than five months.