Investing.com - Gold prices rose Thursday in wake of an earlier U.S. Federal Reserve announcement that it will keep interest rates low through the end of 2014, a year longer than originally planned.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for February delivery traded at USD1,709.35 a troy ounce, up 0.54%.
Gold futures were likely to test support at USD1,649.25 a troy ounce, Wednesday's low, and resistance at USD1,713.95, an earlier Thursday high.
The Federal Reserve has maintained its benchmark lending rate target, the fed funds rate, at 0.25% for some time now.
During the second half of 2011, the Federal Reserve said that rate would likely hold until the end of 2013 although on Wednesday, the Fed said rates would now stay low through the end of 2014.
The news sent the dollar weakening and its traditional hedge, gold, firming.
"We saw an immediate reaction in gold" after the Fed’s announcement, said Michael A. Gayed, the chief investment strategist who helps oversee $150 million at New York-based Pension Partners LLC, according to Bloomberg.
"People are betting that at some point the economy will face inflationary pressures because of the low interest rate."
Elsewhere on the Comex, silver for March delivery was down 0.07% and trading at USD33.097 a troy ounce, while copper for March delivery was down 0.14% and trading at USD3.838 a pound.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for February delivery traded at USD1,709.35 a troy ounce, up 0.54%.
Gold futures were likely to test support at USD1,649.25 a troy ounce, Wednesday's low, and resistance at USD1,713.95, an earlier Thursday high.
The Federal Reserve has maintained its benchmark lending rate target, the fed funds rate, at 0.25% for some time now.
During the second half of 2011, the Federal Reserve said that rate would likely hold until the end of 2013 although on Wednesday, the Fed said rates would now stay low through the end of 2014.
The news sent the dollar weakening and its traditional hedge, gold, firming.
"We saw an immediate reaction in gold" after the Fed’s announcement, said Michael A. Gayed, the chief investment strategist who helps oversee $150 million at New York-based Pension Partners LLC, according to Bloomberg.
"People are betting that at some point the economy will face inflationary pressures because of the low interest rate."
Elsewhere on the Comex, silver for March delivery was down 0.07% and trading at USD33.097 a troy ounce, while copper for March delivery was down 0.14% and trading at USD3.838 a pound.