Gold Hikes for 1st Time in 5 Days on EU Debt Concerns

Gold futures on the COMEX Division of the New York Mercantile Exchange on Monday hiked for the first time in five trading days, buoyed up by intensified worries over the scheduled bond sales of Portugal and Spain this week.

The most active gold contract for February delivery gained 5.2 dollars per ounce, or 0.38 percent, to settle at 1374.1 dollars.

Market traders noted that concerns about the European sovereign debt came back to the forefront before Portugal and Spain's respective bond sales on Jan. 12 and 13. The cost of insuring European sovereign debt against default also increased to a record on Monday.

Moreover, demands from China and India gave another push to the gold hike, as investors in the two countries were seeking a hedge against inflation. China's inflation surged to 5.1 percent in November.

The gold price managed to gain strength after falling for four consecutive trading days in the previous week.

Besides, an analyst noted that the gold rally would continue if the U.S. economic data, such as this week's retail sales figure, turn out worse than expected.

Meanwhile, silver for March delivery increased 19 cents, or 0. 66 percent, to 28.861 dollars per ounce.