Gold prices up 0.2 percent

Base metals prices were lower on Wednesday after London Metal Exchange inventories of some metals grew on the session. But even metals with lower stockpiles saw prices drop. Zinc, which saw inventories drop by 825 tonnes in LME warehouses, dropped 1.6 percent to $3,170 per tonne. Tin inventories dropped as well, but the prices were 0.7 percent lower to $11,857.

Nickel prices dropped slightly to $35,750 per tonne as inventories rose for the first time since January. Aluminium inventories grew by 1,550 tonnes, with prices falling 1.8 percent to $2,657.

Gold prices firmed, but only slightly, gaining 0.2 percent to $654.60 per troy ounce. Analysts said that gains might be limited ahead of the G7 meeting in Germany this weekend. UBS has upped its three-month estimate of gold prices to $700 per troy ounce.