Gold futures rise to record highs

WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) – The price of gold rose to a record high on Friday morning as speculation grows that the US Federal Reserve will announce further interest rate cuts in the coming months.

Escalating tensions in the Middle East are also contributing to the rise in the yellow metal. Israel has reportedly launched heavy attacks on Lebanon. Israel said warplanes hit hundreds of multiple rocket launchers.

Meanwhile, Bulgarian authorities said a Sofia-based company had nothing to do with supplying exploding communications equipment to the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, according to a report by Agence Frane-Presse.

At the beginning of the week, numerous pagers and walkie-talkies exploded across Lebanon, killing several people and injuring almost 3,000.

A stronger dollar is limiting the safe-haven metal’s upside. The dollar index is up 0.25, or about 0.23%, to 100.86.

The price of gold exceeded the $2,600 per ounce mark for the first time. Gold futures for December rose to $2,640.45 per ounce, up more than 1 percent.

Gold futures for October are trading at $2,613.60 an ounce, up $22.70 or about 0.88%.

Silver futures for December rose $0.167, or 0.53%, to $31.590 an ounce, while copper futures for December rose $0.0040 to $4.3510 a pound.

The Fed cut interest rates by 50 basis points on Wednesday. The central bankers are also predicting further interest rate cuts in the coming months and next year. This gives rise to hope that the central bank will manage a soft landing for the economy.

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