Gold and Silver Climb Higher After China Data

On Monday, gold (NYSEARCA:GLD) futures for February delivery, the most active contract, increased $8.90 to settle at $1,714.40 per ounce, while silver (NYSEARCA:SLV) futures for March gained 25 cents to close at $33.38.

Both precious metals climbed higher as positive economic data was released in China. According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics Industrial, production jumped 10.1 percent in November, compared to a year earlier. It beat the median forecast of 9.8 percent growth and was the highest rate since March.

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China’s retail sales also increased 14.9 percent, the best figure in eight months. Electricity output, which is often seen as a less manipulated indicator of economic activity, increased 7.9 percent year-over-year, compared to 6.4 percent in October. However, China’s trade surplus of $19.6 billion held optimism in check. The nation’s trade surplus in October was $32 billion.

By the end of the day, the SPDR Gold Trust (NYSEARCA:GLD) closed 0.38 percent higher, while the iShares Silver Trust (NYSEARCA:SLV) gained 0.34 percent. Gold miners (NYSEARCA:GDX) such as Barrick Gold (NYSE:ABX) and Newmont Mining (NYSE:NEM) both increased more than 1.5 percent. Silver names such as Silver Wheaton (NYSE:SLW) and Endeavour Silver (NYSE:EXK) jumped 2.5 percent and 2.4 percent, respectively.

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Disclosure: Long EXK, AG, HL, PHYS