Spot silver hit a 30-year peak and palladium a nine-year high on Thursday, buoyed by a weak dollar and strength in base metals, while gold rose to its highest in three weeks, supported by good physical demand. Spot silver hit a 30-year high of $30.84 an ounce, before easing to $30.76 by 0719 GMT. US silver futures hit $30.89 an ounce, and was trading at $30.81.
Spot palladium arched to a nine-year high of $793.75, and eased slightly to $793.22, staging a 96 percent surge on the year. Spot platinum rose to $1,767.5, its highest since Nov 11. Gold prices were still well supported, after breaking above the key $1,400 threshold earlier this week, helped by strong physical demand in Asia. Spot gold reached a three-week high of $1,414.30, before inching down to $1,413.30 an ounce. US gold futures were nearly flat at $1,414.1.