Gold gained for a second day in New York

Gold gained for a second day in New York as the weak dollar boosted demand for the precious metal as an alternative investment.

The dollar fell to a three-week low against the euro on speculation the Federal Reserve may signal today is open to purchases of increasing debt beyond the $ 600 billion already announced. Gold, which usually moves inversely to the dollar reached a record $ 1432.50 an ounce on 07 December.

"The weak U.S. dollar is leading to gold," said Peter Fertig, owner of Quantitative Hainburg Commodity Research Ltd., Germany, today by phone. "There is still an argument for further implementation of quantitative easing in the U.S. that would benefit gold."

Gold for February delivery rose 50 cents to $ 1,398.50 an ounce at 8:43 am on the Comex in New York.

Gold will average $ 1,550 next year, compared with a previous forecast of $ 1,400, an analyst at UBS AG Julien Garran, said in a report yesterday. Platinum and palladium are also among the best teams in the bank for next year, said Clawson.

Gold gained 28 percent this year, set for an annual gain of 10, as investors lost confidence in the currency and buy precious metals as a hedge of wealth. More government bond purchases by the Fed are "certainly possible", said Chairman Ben S. Bernanke, in an interview broadcast on CBS Corp. s "60 Minutes" on Dec. 5.

'Safety Unit'

"We hope that European concerns debt, continuing the implications of quantitative easing and a security unit under way to boost investor demand," Garran said UBS. "Absolute faith in fiat currencies remains unstable. Gold is currently behaving like a coin rather than a commodity."

gold assets in exchange-traded products rose 2.98 to 2,096.39 tons metric tons yesterday. Holdings reached a record 2,104.65 tonnes on 14 October. won silver holdings to 51.02 tonnes 15,090.16 tonnes, the highest amount since at least February, data from four suppliers of entertainment.

Platinum for January delivery gained $ 7.70, or 0.5 percent, to $ 1.705 an ounce and palladium for March delivery added $ 5.55, or 0.7 percent, to $ 758 an ounce. Silver for March delivery fell 10.9 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $ 29,515 an ounce.