Gold Up on Dour Data

The bullion exchange-traded funds, iShares Comex Gold Trust(IAU Quote) and streetTracks Gold Shares , followed suit, both up about 1.2% in recent trading.

But prices could already be running into the next level of chart resistance, according to technical analysts.

"I see chart congestion around the mid-$620s up to about $626-28, then at $642-44 thereafter," says James Moore, an analyst at TheBullionDesk.com in London.

On the downside, Moore sees support from scale-down buying starting to kick in around $618.

On the physical metal side of the business, the harsh volatility of the summer may be dampening demand from retail investors. The U.S. Mint reports that sales of its gold bullion coins fell to 30,500 ounces of during October, down from 43,000 ounces in September. Last October, the Mint sold 51,500 ounces of bullion in coin form.

Elsewhere, news from the Associated Press that Iran was test-firing dozens of long-range missiles provided further support, as gold tends to be bought as a safe haven in times of war.

Among the miners, shares of Eldorado Gold(EGO Quote) and Yamana Gold(AUY Quote) were gaining 5.1% and 4.5% respectively, pushed higher by the rallying gold price.

Newmont Mining (NEM Quote) was recently up 0.85% after a losing start. The company announced late Wednesday that Pierre Lassonde will step down as the firm's president at year-end. No successor has yet been named.

Barrick Gold(ABX Quote) announced third-quarter earnings of 46 cents a share vs. 21 cents in the same period of 2005. Excluding a charge of 5 cents a share for special items, mainly due to revised cost estimates for planned mined closures, the company beat analyst expectations of 49 cents a shares.

Investors clearly liked the news and the stock was gaining 1.1% recently.

In base metals, December copper contracts rebounded from Wednesday's drop, closing up 5.05 cents at $3.2915 a pound.