Gold up slightly ahead of Bernanke remarks, stress test results

Metals prices were higher Wednesday, but gold barely managed a gain as August contracts added only 10 cents to $1,191.80 per troy ounce in New York Trade after being down 60 cents from Tuesday’s close earlier in the session.

Gold buyers were hesitant ahead of US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s testimony before a US congressional committee, which did not take place until after the close of floor trade, when prepared remarks were issued which had Mr. Bernanke telling Congress that the outlook for the US economy is “uncertain” and that the Fed will do more to stimulate the economy if necessary.

Investors were also hesitant to buy gold ahead of the results of stress tests on European banks, which are due next week.

In addition to gold’s gains, September silver was up 11 cents to $17.80 per troy ounce and October platinum gained $12 to $1,529.80 per troy ounce.

Among base metals, September copper was up 10 cents to $3.09 per pound in New York trade, while three-month contracts were $219 higher to $6,860 per tonne on the London Metal Exchange, where stockpiles declined for the 24th session in a row.

Inventories of copper in warehouses monitored by the LME have fallen 9.2 percent in just over a month and now stand at 417,625 tonnes.

Price gains today came on a statement from miner Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE: FCX), which called the outlook for the metal used in manufacturing and construction “positive”.

Other base metals also saw prices rise in London trade.