Daily Gold Update

Source: Marketwatch

San Francisco— Gold futures climbed to a record Wednesday as concerns about a global economy slowdown and a slump in equities kept anxious investors in the metal. Gold also benefitted from the U.S. Federal Reserve�s decision Tuesday to keep ultralow interest rates at least through 2013, maintaining the opportunity cost for the metal low. Gold for December delivery rose $41.30, or 2.4%, to finish at $1,784.30 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract traded as earlier topped $1,801 an ounce, an intraday record for the metal.

�The market remains well bid and the downturn in the equity markets continues to show a lack of investor confidence,� said Jim Steel, a precious metals analyst with HSBC in New York. Tuesday�s Fed statement also reverberated as well, he added. Gold, which doesn�t pay dividends or interest and costs money to store, has become more attractive amid low interest rates. See full story.