Daily Gold Update

Source: Marketwatch

San Francisco— Gold futures closed higher Monday after China opted not to raise interest rates, removing some concerns about an abrupt halt to global growth, and investors anticipated the Federal Reserve would back its quantitative-easing program in the next session. Gold for February delivery ended $13.1, or 1%, higher at $1,398 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. It topped $1,400 earlier in the session. Silver for March delivery closed up $1.02, or 3.6%, to $29.62 an ounce.

Over the weekend, China data showed price pressures still on the boil � a fresh reason to buy bullion as a hedge against inflation. China�s government reported consumer prices rose 5.1% on an annual basis in November, the fastest rise in two years. Plus, its monthly industrial output jumped 13.3% in November and retail sales surged 18.7%. However, policy makers in Beijing did not raise interest rates, a move that would have thrown more cold water on the red-hot economy after policy makers increased bank reserve requirements on Friday. �A lack of bad news is good news. People were thinking they would raise rates, perhaps before the data, and they did raise the bank reserve requirement — but that�s not viewed as the heavy artillery,� said Peter Buchanan, senior economist and commodities strategist at CIBC World Markets in Toronto. See full story.