* Gold hits record above $1,140; dollar drop accelerates
* Call options on December gold futures at elevated levels
* Platinum, palladium, rhodium hit highest in over a year
(Recasts, updates comments, closing prices, market
activity, adds NEW YORK to dateline)
By Frank Tang and Jan Harvey
NEW YORK/LONDON, Nov 16 (Reuters) - Gold raced to a record
high above $1,140 an ounce on Monday, gaining 2 percent as a
weakened dollar boosted funds' risk appetite for investments
across the board.
Gains in gold spurred interest in other precious metals,
with platinum, palladium, silver and rhodium all hitting their
strongest levels in more than a year, largely driven by a
tumbling dollar.
"A weak dollar has increased the demand of risky assets of
all kinds, including hard assets. It is clearly reinforcing the
commodities bull market," said James Steel, chief commodities
analyst at HSBC.
"In this atmosphere, it is almost impossible for gold to
resist appreciating along with everything else," Steel said.
Year to date, gold has risen 30 percent, outperforming the
broad-based equities S&P 500 index, which has gained 23 percent
over the same period.
Gold's ascent was driven by a combination of dollar
weakness, inflation worries and doubts about a nascent economic
recovery, analysts said.
Spot gold <XAU=> reached a record $1,143.25 an ounce, and
was at $1,142.70 an ounce at 2:12 p.m. EST (1912 GMT), against
$1,118.50 late in New York on Friday.
U.S. December gold futures <GCZ9> settled up $22.50, or 2
percent, at $1,139.20 an ounce on COMEX division of NYMEX.
Gold's gains were momentarily capped as the dollar managed
a brief rally off lows after U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben
Bernanke said the Fed was attentive to changes in the currency.
But as investors digested his comments, they decided there were
no signals of change to monetary policy.
Rising equity markets also boosted the appeal of assets
seen as higher risk, such as commodities and higher-yielding
currencies. U.S. stocks rose almost 2 percent. []
Other commodities also rallied, with the Reuters/Jefferies
CRB index up nearly 3 percent, as oil rose more than $2 toward
$80 a barrel, while base metals such as zinc and copper also
climbed. [] []
GAINS SEEN
Gold now looks poised for further gains, analysts said,
with a number of call options, or rights to buy, being placed
at elevated levels on U.S. December gold futures.
"There is no reason why over the next few days it can't
have a push towards that $1,200 mark before we get to the
December expiry for the options positions, which everyone's
looking at," said Tom Kendall, precious metals strategist at
Mitsubishi Corp.
"There is a large bunch of $1,200 calls December expiry,
which are acting as a bit of a magnet for prices at the
moment."
Gold's gains lifted other precious metals, with silver
<XAG=> reaching its highest since July last year at $18.43.
Platinum <XPT=> hit $1,451.50 an ounce, its highest since September 2008 and palladium <XPD=> reached its strongest level in 15
months at $375.50.
Later, platinum was at $1,444.50 an ounce against $1,390,
while palladium was at $374 against $353.50. Rhodium <RHOD-LON>
hit a 13-month high at $2,375.
Silver was at $18.41 an ounce against $17.41.
For graphic of gold's rise to record highs, click on
http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/119/GLD/GLD_TMLN1009.html
Close Change Pct 2008 YTD
Chg Close % Chg
US gold <GCZ9> 1139.20 22.5 2.0 884.3 28.8
US silver <SIZ9> 18.400 1.020 5.9 11.295 62.9
US platinum <PLF0> 1444.60 55.90 4.0 941.50 53.4
US palladium <PAZ9> 376.00 19.25 5.4 188.70 99.3
Prices at 2:12 p.m. EST (1912 GMT)
Gold <XAU=> 1142.80 24.30 2.2 878.20 30.1
Silver <XAG=> 18.42 1.01 5.8 11.30 63.0
Platinum <XPT=> 1445.00 55.00 4.0 924.50 56.3
Palladium <XPD=> 374.00 20.500 5.8 184.50 102.7
Gold Fix <XAUFIX=> 1130.00 1.25 0.1 836.50 35.1
Silver Fix <XAGFIX=> 17.74 41.75 2.4 14.76 20.2
Platinum Fix <XPTFIX=> 1424.00 6.00 0.4 1529 -6.9
Palladium Fix<XPDFIX=> 369.00 6.00 1.7 365.0 1.1
(Reporting by Frank Tang and Jan Harvey; Editing by Marguerita
Choy)
