Investing.com - Gold futures rose to the highest level since August on Monday, as doubts over whether the Federal Reserve will hike interest rates before the end of the year boosted the appeal of the precious metal.
Gold for December delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange hit an intraday peak of $1,168.60 a troy ounce, the most since August 24, before trading at $1,166.30 during U.S. morning hours, up $10.40, or 0.9%.
There will be no floor trading on the Comex on Monday because of the Columbus Day holiday in the U.S. All electronic transactions will be booked with Tuesday's trades for settlement.
On Friday, gold jumped $11.60, or 1.01%, after minutes from the Fed’s September policy meeting showed that most policymakers were concerned that recent global economic and financial developments may have increased the downside risks to the U.S. economy.
The minutes underlined the view that the Fed will delay rate hikes until well into 2016 after a weak U.S. jobs report at the start of the month prompted investors to push back expectations on the timing of an initial rate hike.
A delay in raising interest rates would be seen as bullish for gold, as it decreases the relative cost of holding on to the metal, which doesn't offer investors any similar guaranteed payout.
A weaker U.S. dollar also lent support to prices. The greenback fell to a three-week low versus a basket of major currencies on Monday, as declining expectations for a U.S. rate hike before the end of the year continued to weigh on demand for the greenback.
Investors were looking to U.S. economic reports on retail sales and inflation later in the week for further indications on the possible direction of monetary policy.
The timing of a Fed rate hike has been a constant source of debate in the markets in recent months.
Elsewhere in metals trading, copper for December delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange tacked on 1.8 cents, or 0.75%, to hit $2.432 a pound during morning hours in London.
Prices jumped to a session high of $2.437 earlier, a level not seen since September 18, amid concerns over supply cuts by mining giant Glencore (L:GLEN).
Copper traders awaited Chinese trade data to be published Tuesday, which was likely to point to further weakness in the world's second-largest economy.
The Asian nation is the world’s largest copper consumer, accounting for almost 40% of world consumption last year.