NEW YORK: Gold pushed above $1,400 an ounce Tuesday as improving retail sales sparked interest in the precious metal as a hedge against inflation. Gold for February delivery rose $6.30 to settle at $1,404.30 an ounce. Silver, platinum and palladium all settled higher amid expectations for improving demand. In contracts for March delivery, silver rose 16.4 cents to settle at $29.788 an ounce, palladium added $15.75 to $768.20 an ounce and copper gained 0.2 cent to $4.2015 a pound. January platinum settled up $16.60 at $1,713.90 an ounce. Meanwhile, oil prices dropped Tuesday, reversing early gains as traders held back ahead of the release of data on US crude stocks Wednesday. New York's main contract, light sweet crude for January, declined 33 cents to $88.28. Brent North Sea crude for delivery in January was stable, rising only two cents to $91.21 a barrel in London trade.
