Commodity Online

LONDON: Against the run of play, gold suffered its worst defeat in recent times as it tumbled to nearly six percent low on Wednesday.

However gold was not the only loser as other metals tracked gold, with platinum slipping more than three per cent to a one month low, silver falling over seven per cent to a three week low and palladium posting sharp declines.

Spot gold fell to a low of $942.30 an ounce and was quoted at $947.20/$948.10 at 1549 GMT, against $1,002.30/$1,003.10 late in New York on Tuesday.

At its record high of $1,030.80 on Monday, gold was up 23 per cent this year from the start of 2008, as fears of inflation, hopes of further rate cuts and US financial concerns boosted bullion buying. However, some analysts said the increasing threat of inflation might support gold in the longer term.