Palladium zoomed past $1,900 an ounce for the first time ever on Tuesday as a power crisis halted production at mines in major producer South Africa, exacerbating concerns over supply and extending the autocatalyst's record run.
Spot palladium was up 0.7% at $1,894.85 an ounce, as of 1:50 p.m. (1850 GMT), having earlier hit an all-time high of $1,903.
"South Africa produces 40% of world's palladium and the ESKOM outages are hitting some mines, giving palladium just that extra nudge above $1,900," said Tai Wong, head of base and precious metals derivatives trading at BMO.
"We've now had 13 consecutive positive sessions, which seems a little rich, so it wouldn't be surprising to see some consolidation, though the overall trend continues to look quite positive."
Mines across South Africa are shutting down after flash flooding caused the largest power blackouts in more than a decade, with major miners Harmony Gold, Impala Platinum, and Sibanye-Stillwater
all being forced to cut production.
Scarcity concerns surrounding palladium have already helped the metal rise about 50% in 2019, owing to its large demand in the auto sector.
Other metals also gained on the outages in South Africa, with platinum up 2.3% at $915.53 an ounce, the highest since Nov. 22. Silver rose 0.4% to $16.66.
Gold got a further lift form uncertainties surrounding US-China trade talks ahead of a Dec. 15 tariff deadline and a weaker dollar.
Spot gold rose 0.1% to $1,463.88 per ounce. US gold futures settled up 0.2% at $1,468.10.
"Gold is riding higher on dollar weakness and caution ahead of a looming tariff deadline," said FXTM analyst Lukman Otunuga.
If Washington proceeds with the earmarked tariffs, gold could get a further boost, he added.
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