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Gold and silver prices continued to surge to new heights on Tuesday, also lifting the shares of the companies mining them. The spot gold price was up 1.1% to $4,728 an ounce, up from around $4,311 at the start of the year and near $2,600 at the start of last year. Silver had climbed another 0.7% to $95.40 an ounce, up from just below $72 at the start of the year and just over $30 a year earlier. There could be significance in silver lagging gold, said market analyst Kathleen Brooks at XTB. "While precious metals have been the go-to asset during the current period of geopolitical instability, the stalling of the silver rally just under $95 an ounce, suggests that there is a limit to this rally. "Added to this, the sell off in the bond market may cause economic worries to surface, and silver is more closely linked to the global economic cycle compared to gold." Top of the FTSE 100 risers was Endeavour Mining PLC (LSE:EDV, TSX:EDV, OTCQX:EDVMF), up 2.2% on the day, while Pan African Resources PLC (AIM:PAF, OTCQX:PAFRY) and Hochschild Mining PLC (LSE:HOC, OTCQX:HCHDF) were up 1.5% and 1% to join the top risers on the FTSE 250. What happens next for commodity prices and financial markets will "ultimately depend on President Trump’s actions in the coming days", said Brooks, with Greenland a primary area of focus. The US President reposted a mocked-up picture of himself holding a US flag with a caption of "Greenland - US territory est 2026" but also said that he will hold a meeting about Greenland at Davos this week after a conversation with the Nato secretary general Mark Rutte. Susannah Streeter, chief investment strategist at Wealth Club, said with transatlantic relations fraught amidst President Trump’s willingness to sow trade chaos to further what he believes to be US interests, this is "causing anxiety among investors". The fresh surge into safe havens has seen gold breach new record levels. "The precious metal continues to shine as the Greenland crisis becomes more entrenched," said Streeter. Earlier it breached $4,718 an ounce. European leaders are prepared to meet to discuss retaliatory measures, as President Trump’s dialled up his determination to take control of the island. With both sides so entrenched, negotiation for now looks highly difficult, and it’s likely to keep investor nerves on edge."
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