Precious Metals Soar; Dollar Gains

Precious metals prices, especially those of platinum, soared in the United States on Monday in anticipation of further unrest in South Africa.

South Africa produces much of the world’s platinum and gold. Traders fear that the escalating turbulence could disrupt supplies.

The dollar closed higher in the United States and on European markets after falling in Tokyo. It was buoyed by a surge of technical trading by speculators.

The precious metals rally begin in the United States Monday morning.

Platinum for current delivery jumped $25, the maximum allowed, to close at $445.70 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

That was the first time the metal rose by that amount since Aug. 16, 1985, the exchange said.

The gain pushed the price of platinum to its highest level since the third week in March, when it closed near $450 an ounce, according to American Precious Metals Advisors of New York.

Gold was quoted at $351 an ounce, up $9.50 from Friday’s late bid.