Gold surged past the $4,500-an-ounce mark for the first time on Wednesday, while silver and platinum also scaled record highs, as investors piled into precious metals on safe-haven demand and expectations that US interest rates will fall further next year. Spot gold rose 0.1% to $4,492.51 per ounce by 0359 GMT, after touching a record high of $4,525.19 earlier in the session. US gold futures for February delivery climbed 0.3% to a record high of $4,520.60. Silver gained 1.2% to $72.27 an ounce, after hitting an all-time peak of $72.70 earlier, while platinum jumped 3.3% to $2,351.05 after rising to a historic high of ... (full story)