US gold futures rose amid light volume early on Wednesday, extending the previous session's gains as the rise in crude oil and the drop in the dollar prompted buying of bullion as an alternative investment. December gold was up $7.10 at $835.20 an ounce on Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange at 10:47am (1447 GMT). Range traded was $826.00 to $841.40.
Buying from funds in European sessions, recent weakness in the stock markets and lingering credit market jitters cited, RBC Capital Markets Global Futures VP George Gero said. Gold options market indicates sideways movement in underlying futures in the near term, Comex options floor trader said.
Spot gold was quoted at $829.00/830.00, versus Tuesday's US close at $822.90/824.30. September silver up 1 cent at $13.585 an ounce, in a $13.400 to $13.850 range. Estimated 9:00 am volume 13,330 lots. Spot silver was at $13.55/13.61 versus $13.56/13.64 at the Tuesday close. Silver gold fix was set at $13.76 an ounce. October platinum was up $21.90, or 1.5 percent, at $1,443.00 an ounce.
Platinum's recent tumultuous drop due to heavy speculative and investor liquidations, exacerbated by increasing flows of scrapped metal, Societe Generale said. Spot platinum was at $1,429.50/1,449.50. September palladium was up $6.25, or 2.2 percent, at $291.95 an ounce. Spot palladium was at $291.00/299.00.