Gold rose 1 percent on Monday to a six-week high, boosted by technical buying and as the euro rallied ahead of the outcome of a euro zone meeting on Greek debt restructuring. Gold option volatility also spiked ahead of an expiration later this week. The metal broke above $1,669 an ounce, a key resistance level on technical charts, and approached the $1,700 an ounce level for the first time in a month.
Spot gold was up 1.1 percent at $1,676.76 an ounce by 2:30 pm EST (1930 GMT). Its session high of $1,681.16 was the highest price since December 12. Gold has fallen only twice in the past 10 sessions and has risen 7 percent in January. US gold futures for February delivery settled up $14.30 an ounce at $1,678.30 in the COMEX division of NYMEX. Trading volume was in line with its 30-day average. Silver closed at $32.30 an ounce, supported by gold. Spot platinum was up 1.9 percent at $1,559.74 an ounce, while spot palladium was up 1.3 percent at $682.03 an ounce.