The strength in platinum may have spilled over into gold somewhat, said HSBC metals analyst and senior vice-president James Steel, adding, “Anglo Platinum's CEO gave a report today and said he thought the market would move into a deficit. That ramped platinum up and lent some support to gold.”
Angloplat chief executive officer Neville Nicolau said following the report that he saw the price of platinum rising above $1,200 an ounce for the rest of the year on robust platinum jewellery sales in China, investment demand and a recovering car sector.
About 60 per cent of all platinum is used in automotive catalysts to clean vehicle exhaust emissions.
Rhodium prices climbed 5.4 percent on Monday and are up more than 12 percent week-on-week as demand for the white metal used in autocatalysts picked up, with a rise in other precious metals further supporting gains.
Rhodium climbed $80 an ounce to $1,550 an ounce on Monday, up from $1,470 an ounce on Friday. Last Monday the metal was bid at $1,380 an ounce.
Demand for rhodium from the car industry has been so weak in recent months that even relatively small increases in demand are having a noticeable effect on prices.
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