* Gold climbs to new four-month high as dollar slumps
* Oil surges to record on resurgent supply fears
* Equities slide on fresh fears over credit crisis
(Recasts, updates prices, market activity, adds second byline,
dateline, previously LONDON)
By Carole Vaporean and Jan Harvey
NEW YORK/LONDON, July 11 (Reuters) - Gold rallied more
than 2 percent to a four-month high on Friday as the dollar
slumped against the euro, oil soared to a record high and
equity markets floundered on credit crisis fears.
Spot gold <XAU=> surged to $964.75/966.75 an ounce by 4:11
a.m. EDT (2011 GMT) from $944.10/445.30 an ounce late Thursday.
It touched a session high of $967.60, its strongest since March
19.
New York August gold futures <GCQ8> jumped $18.60, or 1.97
percent, to finish at $960.60 an ounce on the COMEX division of
New York Mercantile Exchange. The session high of $969.10 an
ounce also was last seen on March 19.
"It was a combination of things like the weakness in the
dollar, crude making new all-time highs sparked some buying.
Some concerns about the Fannie and Freddie situation weighing
on equities and lead to safe-haven buying in gold," said David
Meger, metals analyst Alaron Trading, Chicago.
Oil prices jumped $5 to a record high above $147 a barrel,
fueling early gains in gold. Geopolitical tensions involving
Iran fueled an early crude rally.
Fears of unrest in Nigeria and a looming strike of
Brazilian oil workers also buoyed oil prices. [] Gold also
rose, as the precious metal often is bought as a hedge against
oil-led inflation.
UBS analyst John Reade said "oil, weakness in the dollar
and issues with the agencies" are driving gold higher.
Meanwhile, the dollar tumbled to its lowest since April 23
against the euro as stock prices slipped on Wall Street and in
Europe. [] Gold, which often moves opposite the
dollar, extended gains.
Worries about the stability of two U.S. government-backed
mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae <FNM.N> and Freddie Mac
<FRE.N> were thought to be constraining the Federal Reserve's
ability to raise U.S. interest rates. This fed inflation fears,
which also hurt the dollar.
U.S. stock prices tumbled broadly on fears that record oil
prices and problems at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac could slow
the economy. Weak stocks buoyed gold in a flight to safety.
"Risk aversion has been sweeping through the markets this
week," said Calyon metals analyst Robin Bhar. "Obviously gold
does well when there's heightened risk aversion, (such as)
concerns about ... the financial system."
Platinum rallied late in the session, profitting from
gold's rise and as signs of firmer Chinese demand for the metal
used in autocatalysts, as well as ongoing supply fears linked
to the South African supply shortage fuelled buying.
Spot platinum <XPT=> firmed to $2,023.0/2,043.0 an ounce by
late in New York, having earlier hit a one-week high of
$2,045.00 an ounce.
Among other precious metals, spot palladium <XPD=> rose to
$448.50/456.50 an ounce from $449.00/457.00 an ounce late in
New York, while silver <XAG=> advanced to $18.76/18.84 an ounce
from $18.28/18.33 late in New York.
(Reporting by Carole Vaporean in New York and Jan Harvey in
London; Editing by David Gregorio)
