Gold prices at new closing high in New York

The price of gold hit new highs in New York trade Thursday as Wall Street equities markets dropped, first-time jobless claims were up in the US and as the Philadelphia Federal Reserve reported that expansion of manufacturing activity in its region has slowed significantly.

August contracts for gold were up $18.20 at the close of floor trade to $1,248.70 per troy ounce, a new record high, while the intraday high also set a record when the contract hit a record $1,252.50 per troy ounce for the precious metal.

Among other news sending investors in search of safe places to put their money, the US Labor Department reported that new jobless claims were up by 12,000 last week, to 472,000, a gain more than double that expected by analysts.

Coupled with the news about Philadelphia region manufacturing, investors questioned the pace of US recovery from the recession.

Other precious metals also saw gains as July silver added 33 cents to $18.77 per troy ounce, July platinum was up $4.50 to $1,572 per troy ounce and September palladium gained $6.05 to $481.25 per troy ounce.

Among base metals, copper dropped 9 cents to $2.91 per pound, while three-month contracts for copper fell $204 to $6,446 per tonne on the London Metal Exchange as the slowdown in manufacturing expansion in the Philadelphia region worried investors.

The price of lead was up in London, but nickel, aluminium, tin and zinc all followed copper lower.