Gold, silver futures rise as stock market retreats

Gold and silver prices rose Thursday as the stock market went into retreat.

The actively traded June contract for gold rose $14.60, or 1.1 percent, to settle at $1,320.50 an ounce Thursday. May silver rose 32 cents, or 1.6 percent, to $20.09 an ounce.

Precious metals prices were rising as the stock market fell sharply and investors looked for other assets to park their money in. Biotech, technology and other sectors that had soared over the past year fell the most. In late trading, the Nasdaq composite was down 3 percent.

Other metals also rose.

Platinum for July delivery rose $21.20, or 1.5 percent, to $1,460.10 an ounce. Palladium for June delivery rose $9.75, or 1.2 percent, to $792.30 an ounce. Copper for May edged up a penny to $3.05 a pound.

Energy futures mostly fell.

Crude oil fell 20 cents, or 0.2 percent, to $103.40 a barrel in New York.

Heating oil fell a penny to $2.94 a gallon, wholesale gasoline for May was flat at $3 a gallon and natural gas from the same month rose 6.9 cents, or 1.5 percent, to $4.655 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Prices for major agricultural commodities fell.

In May contracts, wheat fell 7 cents to $6.63 a bushel, soybeans fell 13 cents to $14.83 a bushel and corn slipped a penny to $5.01 a bushel.