KARACHI, Nov 26: Gold prices increased their value by Rs322 to Rs16,457 per 10 grams as compared to Saturday’s closing rates of Rs 16,135 in the Sarafa Market here on Monday.

According to Sarafa Market dealers, the prices of silver also increased by Rs4.15 to Rs287.00.

In Multan, the prices of gold 24ct and gold 22ct increased by Rs270 to Rs15,700 and Rs200 to Rs14,300.

Silver tezabi and silver thobi were secure at Rs280 and Rs250.

Meanwhile, gold prices jumped to two-week highs on Monday as investors sought refuge from financial market uncertainty, the dollar slipped and oil prices held firm near record highs, Reuters adds from London

Platinum hit a record high of $1,486 an ounce on worries about falling supplies from South Africa after the country’s biggest union said last week it was planning a strike against the mounting number of mine deaths.

Spot gold hit $836.70 a troy ounce, the highest since Nov 9 and was up at $836.15/836.85 by 1043 GMT, compared with $821.20/821.90 late in New York on Friday.

Hong Kong gold prices closed at $824.60-825.10 an ounce, up from Friday’s close of $811.00-811.50. It opened at $827.10-827.60.

Earlier this month gold hit a 28-year high of $845.40. The dollar was within striking distance of record lows against the euro as investors sold on concern about the health of the US economy and expectations of further rate cuts from the US Federal Reserve.

A falling US currency makes dollar-denominated metals cheaper for holders of other currencies, while gold is seen as a hedge against financial market turmoil and inflation, which is often sparked by rising oil prices.

Traders expect gold prices to stay at current levels and possibly test the record high of $850 an ounce set in January 1980.

Over the course of this year, many investors have sold gold to cover stock market losses, while others have cut their holdings of the precious metal alongside other investments to take their portfolios back to neutral.

But for now, gold markets around the world are taking their cue from the dollar and oil prices as can be seen in the rising value of gold in other currencies such as the euro and Australian dollars.—Agencies