Metals mixed as demand declines

In metals markets on Tuesday, gold gained $1 to $592.00 per troy ounce as lower prices led to buying, while South Africa said that its output was 7.2 percent lower by volume in July compared to the same month last year. Silver and platinum were also up on the session, by 0.9 percent to $11.18 per troy ounce and 0.6 percent to $1,200 per troy ounce respectively, but palladium was 2.2 percent lower to $311 per troy ounce.

Base metals were also mixed, with copper up 0.5 percent to $7,500 per tonne. Zinc was 0.6 percent higher to $3,280 per tonne after a drop of 6.9 percent on Monday. Aluminium was lower, however, as it dropped 1.4 percent to $2,459 per tonne.