London — Gold rose on Thursday as oil prices languished near seven-month lows, denting risky assets such as stocks while the dollar retreated. Spot gold was up 0.5% at 1,252.12 per ounce by 1.53pm GMT. It had added 0.3% in the previous session after briefly touching a five-week low of 1,240.75. US gold futures for August delivery rose 0.6% to 1,252.80 per ounce. "The weakness on the equity market is a factor providing support to gold," said Carsten Menke, an analyst at Julius Baer. Gold is often seen as a safe-haven option at times of volatility in riskier markets such as stocks. European equities took a battering as oil prices hovered near seven-month lows on concerns about a supply glut. "The uncontrolled oil price spill in the futures markets may have seen some traders pushing the risk aversion button and buying gold," said Jeffrey Halley, senior market analyst at OANDA. "The primary driver appears to be the flattening of thelonger-dated US Treasury curve." The US Treasury yield ...
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