Iran fears stir commodity prices

World commodity prices have been boosted by concerns over Iran’s nuclear programme, with gold and other precious metals surging to new highs.

Also underpinning the search for “investment havens” are worries about the state of the US economy and dollar.

The price of gold surged as far as $564.30 an ounce, its highest since 1981, before trimming gains.

Platinum had earlier hit a record of $1,049 and silver also gained. Crude oil prices climbed amid supply worries.