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Gold prices take a tumble

Tuesday, April 1, 2008 12:06 PM PDT

ELKO - Gold lost more than $50 an ounce in March, or 5.2 percent, according to the Internet commodities market magazine MarketWatch, but the first quarter was still outstanding as the precious metal gained $86.60 an ounce, or 10.3 percent.

Prices continued to drop today, tumbling more than $57 an ounce in Zurich (see page A2).

The $50 decline in March was attributed to a firmer dollar, according to MarketWatch, but gold wasn't the only commodity to decline. Crude oil futures also dipped nearly 5 percent.

Quoting Mark O'Byrne, executive director at Gold and Silver Investments, MarketWatch said the weakening U.S. economy continues to help gold as the metal is widely considered a safe haven for investors.

Most analysts believe gold will rebound and reach the $1,000 mark soon as the dollar's rebound is seen as short term.

The more the U.S. economy shrinks, the better gold will do, said MarketWatch, mirroring conventional wisdom.

Along with gold, silver fell 63 cents; platinum dropped $5.40 and copper 15 cents.

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