Investing.com - Gold futures rose to a four-week high on Monday, as concerns over the global economic outlook boosted demand for safe haven assets.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold for December delivery hit a session high of $1,238.00 a troy ounce, a level not seen since September 17.
Prices last traded at $1,229.30 an ounce during U.S. morning hours, up $7.60, or 0.62%.
Futures were likely to find support at $1,205.10, the low from October 8, and resistance at $1,243.20, the high from September 16.
Also on the Comex, silver for December delivery tacked on 6.5 cents, or 0.38%, to trade at $17.36 a troy ounce.
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.
Demand for safe haven assets remained underpinned after the International Monetary Fund last week cut its forecasts for global growth in 2014 and 2015 and warned that the recovery remains weak and uneven.
The organization is now forecasting global economic growth of 3.3% this year, down from 3.4% in July and expects growth of 3.8% in 2015, compared to an earlier prediction of 4.0%.
Sentiment was also hit by fears that Germany, the euro zone’s largest economy is being dragged into a recession after recent data indicated unexpected weakness in manufacturing and exports.
Meanwhile, gold traders continued to speculate over the timing of a rate hike in the U.S. after the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s September meeting released last week showed that some officials were concerned over the impact of the stronger dollar on global growth and the outlook for U.S. inflation.
The minutes prompted investors to trim back expectations for an earlier-than-expected hike in U.S. interest rates.
On Friday, Fed Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer said weaker-than-expected global growth could prompt it to slow the pace of eventual interest rate hikes.
Lower interest rates can give gold a lift, as it decreases the relative cost of holding on to the metal, which doesn't offer investors any similar guaranteed payout.
Elsewhere in metals trading, copper for December delivery dipped 0.1 cents, or 0.02%, to trade at $3.035 a pound.
Official trade data released Monday showed that China’s copper arrivals rose 14.7% in September to 390,000 metric tons, compared to 340,000 in August.
The country’s trade surplus narrowed to $31.0 billion last month from $49.8 billion in August, compared to estimates for a surplus of $41.0 billion.
Chinese exports climbed 15.3% from a year earlier in September, beating expectations for an 11.8% increase, while imports rose 7.0%, compared to forecasts for a 2.7% decline.
China is the world's largest copper consumer, accounting for nearly 40% of global demand.