Gold ticks lower; Soybeans rise after four-day slide; Copper gains

Gold prices inched lower on Thursday as the dollar recovered slightly after a large but widely expected interest rate hike by the US central bank sent the currency tumbling in the previous session.

Spot gold fell 0.1 percent to $1,831.63 per ounce, as of 0235 GMT, while US gold futures rose 0.8 percent to $1,833.40.

Silver firm

Spot silver firmed 0.1 percent to $21.67 per ounce, while platinum gained 0.2 percent to $940.98.

Palladium rose 0.5 percent to $1,870.79.

Soybean up

Chicago soybean futures rose on Thursday as traders scooped up bargains after a four-day slide, although forecasts of improved weather in parts of the US Midwest kept a lid on prices.

Wheat gained ground after closing largely unchanged on Wednesday.

The most-active soybean contract of the Chicago Board of Trade climbed 0.8 percent to $17.07-1/2 a bushel, as of 0322 GMT. Wheat rose 0.7 percent to $10.57 a bushel and corn gained 0.4 percent to $7.77 a bushel.

Copper edges up on hopes of recovery in China

Copper and aluminum prices rose on Thursday, supported by lower inventories, hopes of recovery in top metals consumer China and a 75 basis point interest rate hike by the US Federal Reserve in a widely expected move.

Three-month aluminum on the London Metal Exchange gained 2 percent to $2,645 a ton, as of 0247 GMT, while copper rose 1 percent to $9,322 a ton.

The most-traded July aluminum contract in Shanghai was up 1.3 percent at $3,013.44 a ton.