Daily Gold Update

Source: Marketwatch

San Francisco— Gold futures notched their largest one-day percentage drop in five years, ending 5.9% lower Friday, as turmoil in global financial markets led to a rush to sell gold and other metals to raise cash. Silver ended 18% lower, its worst in decades, while platinum stumbled 5.7% and other metals also collected a slew of low marks along the way. Gold for December delivery lost $101.90 to settle at $1,639.80 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. That was gold�s largest one-day percentage loss since June 2006, and its largest dollar loss since Aug. 24. The settlement price was also the lowest for a most-active gold contract since Aug. 1, when it finished at $1,621.70 an ounce.

Many investors deemed the plan insufficient and reacted by dumping stocks, commodities and other assets perceived as riskier as they dashed for cash and Treasurys. That sentiment spilled over to Friday metals trading. �We had further liquidation related to margin selling from yesterday,� said Jim Steel, precious metals analyst with HSBC in New York. �The currency markets are still pressuring gold … and funds have been going more into Treasurys and the U.S. dollar.� See full story.