Crude Fuels Metals

Updated from 12:48 p.m. EDT

Fueled by rising energy prices, metals rallied Monday, with gold, silver and copper leading the charge.

Copper finished up 8.45 cents, or 3.4%, at $2.547 a pound, after touching an all-time high of $2.560 intraday. Copper got a lift after data from the New York Mercantile Exchange showed supply of the metal was down by 592 tons as of late Friday.

Silver gained 22.5 cents, or 1.9%, to $11.74 an ounce.

Gold for June delivery closed up $7.60, or 1.2%, at $594.30 an ounce, after earlier touching a 25-year high of $596.80. The latest move took place as crude oil prices shot higher amid continued jitters about Iran's nuclear ambitions. Over the weekend, Iran tested a new underwater missile in the Persian Gulf waters, which oil tankers cross on a daily basis.

Crude oil finished up $0.11 at $66.74 per barrel, after flirting with $68 earlier in the session. As crude oil finished off its highs, metals -- including gold -- also eased into the close.

"The key driver for gold right now is crude and its inflationary implications," says Charles Nedoss, gold analyst with the Peak Trading Group. "Crude is putting fire under gold."

The precious metal has benefited from its capacity to serve as a safe haven amid geopolitical tensions and as a hedge against inflation amid soaring energy prices.

The next challenge for gold bugs remains the psychologically key $600 level. Gold charged through $500 late last year and mounted an uninterrupted climb to $580 until late January. After a setback, which led to a test of the $540 level, gold has been resuming its climb toward $600 in recent weeks.

"We're going to $600," says Tom Hartmann, a broker with Altavest, a full-service futures and foreign exchange brokerage firm. "But whether we go much beyond will depend on outside factors" such as energy prices and geopolitical tensions.