Gold closes at $869.10, highest finish ever

Gold came close to an all-time high price and closed at its highest ever in New York on Thursday.

Early in the session, February gold traded at $872.90 per troy ounce, just shy of its all-time high of $873 per troy ounce, set in January 1980.

It ended the floor session on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange at $869.10 per troy ounce, $9.10 higher than Wednesday’s close and its highest-ever closing price.

The gains came as crude oil prices soared to a new high, a few cents above $100 per barrel, before falling back slightly but still trading above $99 per barrel.

Despite the advance, however, some analysts worried that gold could see short-term declines if the dollar climbs in relation to the euro, and some believe that the price is currently up to $150 higher than fundamentals would support.

March Silver added 21 cents to $15.50 per troy ounce, a gain of 1.4 percent on the session.

Platinum was also higher on the day, with April contracts adding $5.80 to $1,551.80 per troy ounce.