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CHICAGO, July 20 (Xinhua) -- Gold futures on the COMEX Division of the New York Mercantile Exchange hit a five-week high on Monday as plummeting dollar fueled gold's appeal of a hedge. Silver and platinum went up, too.
Gold price for August delivery rose 11.30 U.S. dollars, or 1.2 percent, to finish at 948.80 dollars an ounce, touching 955.40 dollars earlier in the session, the highest level in more than five weeks.
Dollar almost dominated the yellow metal's move for the whole session as the greenback dropped to a six-week low against the euro.
The U.S. currency declined 0.8 percent to 1.4208 dollars per euro by the end of gold's floor trading time in New York, more than 1 cent lower than 1.4102 dollars on late session of last Friday. It reached the weakest level of 1.4249 dollars since June 5. Meanwhile, the dollar index, a gauge to track the greenback against the currencies of six major U.S. trading partners, touched78.799, the lowest level since June 3.
Dollar's depreciation is generally considered to make gold more attractive to investors who purchase the precious metal as a hedge to store value.
September silver finished at 13.625 dollars per ounce, up 22.2 cents. October platinum rose 12.80 dollars to 1188.90 dollars an ounce.
