Gold rallied to near its all-time high on Tuesday, as investors sought a safe haven on fears that European officials were failing to stop a debt crisis from spreading and uncertainty related to frantic US talks to raise its debt limit. Bullion has gained over 6 percent this month on fears about a deepening eurozone crisis, now trading less than $5 below its all-time high of $1,575.79 set on May 2. Gold priced in euro and sterling hit record highs for a second consecutive day.
Spot gold was up 1 percent at $1,568.89 an ounce by 2:43 pm EDT (1843 GMT). US COMEX August gold futures settled up $13.10 at $1,562.30, after trading between $1,541.10 and $1,574.30. US trading volume was around 170,000 lots, one of the heaviest since the start of June, as investors switched their focus back on the gold market as equities have slumped Spot silver gained 1.4 percent to $36.17 an ounce. Among platinum group metals, platinum was up 0.8 percent at $1,734.49 an ounce, while palladium rose 0.3 percent to $766.47.