Precious metals gain; base metal prices trend downward

Gold prices climbed in New York on Monday after the US dollar declined again in relation to the euro after indications were that the US Federal Reserve will cut interest rates when it meets this week but that the European Central Bank will raise rates soon in the face of inflation threats.

February gold added $13.30 to $813.50 per troy ounce, a gain of 1.7 percent on the session.

Meanwhile, March silver jumped 35 cents to $14.85 per troy ounce and January platinum was up $4.10 to $1,466.30 per troy ounce.

Among base metals, however, prices were generally lower.

March copper was down 3 cents to $3.09 per pound in New York, while three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange fell $50 to $6,860 per tonne.

Three-month nickel dropped $1,100 to $25,300 per tonne in London, while lead fell as low as $2,540 per tonne during the session.

Zinc and aluminium were down by lesser amounts, to $2,429.75 per tonne and $2,468 per tonne respectively while tin remained steady.