Gold Pushes Higher Still

Expectations that a rise in global interest rates may eventually derail world growth is overdone, or at least premature, according to Conti. "My view is that strong economies will continue to boost demand for commodities [and their prices] until there's a quantifiable slowdown, which might not be until 2008."

Meanwhile, gold and silver have continued their bullish run amid dollar weakness, crude oil near $75 and high geopolitical tensions over Iran's nuclear ambitions.

Wednesday's drop in crude oil came after the Energy Department reported an unexpected rise in U.S. inventories of gasoline and oil in the latest week. In recent action, crude oil for June delivery was dropping $1.61 at $73 a barrel.

But the standoff between Western countries and Iran, the world's fourth-largest producer of crude oil, continue to provide support both for crude oil and gold. The precious metal acts as a hedge against inflation and as a safe-haven asset amid geopolitical uncertainties.

On Tuesday, the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council -- the U.S., the U.K., France, Russia and China -- met in Paris to discuss possible sanctions on Iran, which has refused to bow to demands to stop its nuclear program.

The U.S. said it is pushing for "stiff" sanctions that may include the use of armed force, while China and Russia are said to oppose sanctions so far.

"I don't think [gold's bull run is] over," says Nedoss. "There's enough going on in Iran to keep people on the edge of their seats."

Meanwhile, the soaring price of crude oil, so far, continues to fuel inflationary pressures while not derailing the U.S. and the global economy -- all bullish factors for gold and other metals, notes Sloane.

As for dollar weakness, it's increasingly grabbing traders' attention as it hovers near 11-month lows vs. the euro. A weak dollar raises the value of dollar-denominated commodities, such as gold, as it takes more of the currency to buy the same amount of the commodity.