Gold, silver advance as platinum, palladium prices drop

Precious metals prices were mixed Wednesday in New York after the dollar weakened again and crude oil set new prices records.

August gold added $2 to $946.50 per troy ounce while September silver gained 14 cents to $18.43 per troy ounce, but October platinum dropped $11.70 to $2,077 per troy ounce and palladium fell $2.05 to $4.70 per troy ounce.

Platinum and palladium prices were down on demand concerns after the top three auto manufacturers in the United States, General Motors (NYSE: GM), Toyota (TYO: 7203) and Ford Motor (NYSE: F) all reported that sales were down in June.

Both platinum and palladium are used in the manufacture of pollution control devices for motor vehicles.