Gold News & Info

Source: Marketwatch

San Francisco— Gold futures finished a roller-coaster Friday just a tad higher, ceding the spotlight to silver, which ended the week rising 5.5%. Gold for December delivery added 20 cents, or less than 0.1%, to $1,237.90 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. On the week, gold has gained 0.7%, notching a fourth consecutive weekly gain. So far this month, gold has gained 5%, already making up for losses of 5% in July.

Silver touched a multimonth high earlier but also lost some steam as floor trading drew to a close. Investors were mostly drawn to silver as a cheaper alternative to gold. Gold had gained about $4 an ounce before Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's speech but dipped into the red afterward, alongside most markets. It reversed higher as the dollar came off the day's highs. Earlier Friday, Bernanke spoke at the annual Fed summer retreat in Wyoming. He said the government would resist deflation but didn't directly say whether the Fed would take new measures to combat the slower pace of the recovery. See full story.