Gold higher on safety demand

The price of gold was higher in New York Wednesday, adding $9.60 to $1,171.30 per troy ounce as investors looked for safe place to put their money as the future of European economies looked uncertain.

Earlier, New York gold hit its highest level of the year at $1,175 per troy ounce after Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services downgraded Spain’s debt, piling on more concerns that Greece’s debt crisis will spread to other European nations.

Just yesterday, S&P downgraded Greece’s credit rating to junk status and cut Portugal’s rating by two levels.

But despite the concerns, other precious metals did not join in gold’s gains, as silver was down less than a cent in afternoon trade to $18.11 per troy ounce and platinum dropped $7.30 to $1,711 40 per troy ounce.

Among base metals, copper was up less than a cent to $3.37 per pound in New York trade, while the price for three-month contracts on the London Metal Exchange was down over half a percent in afternoon trade in London.

Prices for nickel, zinc and tin were all also lower in London, but aluminium saw gains.