Precious metals prices advance

Gold closed at $684 per troy ounce on Wednesday in trade on the New York Mercantile Exchange, a gain of $23 on the day. The gains came after the US Labor Department released new data showing that inflation was up by 0.2 percent in January, while core inflation grew by 0.3 percent. With Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke testifying before Congress last week that inflation was expected to decline, some analysts called the steep hike in gold prices a sign that Bernanke and the Fed could be beginning to lose credibility.

Other precious metals followed gold higher. March silver added 43 cents to $14.27 per troy ounce, while April platinum was up $14.10 to $1,233.20 per troy ounce and March palladium gained $4.40 to $344.15 per troy ounce.

Base metals were mixed on Wednesday. While nickel hit a record high of $40,300 per tonne during the day, it was down $350 to trade at $39,500 by late afternoon on the London Metal Exchange. Meanwhile, tin prices reached as high as $13,900 during the session, up $400 from Tuesday’s close.