Gold, silver up as most other metals decline

Gold and silver both saw prices rise Tuesday in New York, but most other metals were lower after the US dollar strengthened, cutting demand for copper and other industrial metals.

March copper was down 2 cents to $3.14 per pound in New York, while three-month contracts for the metal used in manufacturing and construction fell $78.50 to $6,867.50 per tonne on the London Metal Exchange.

LME copper inventories were up for the sixteenth consecutive session, gaining over 1 percent to 429,650 tonnes, the most in storage in LME-monitored warehouses in seven months.

Among precious metals, December gold added $1.90 to $1,166.60 per troy ounce in New York trade, while March silver was up 26 cents to $18.74 per troy ounce but January platinum dropped $8.60 to $1,459 per troy ounce.