Precious metals climbed in tandem on Tuesday, reaching settlement highs that ranged from earlier May for silver to the third week of June for palladium. Gaining for the fifth time in six sessions, gold for August delivery tacked on $24.40, or 1.3%, to settle at $1,980.80 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement marks gold’s highest since June 6. "The charts have recently turned more bullish for both precious metals [gold and silver], which is inviting the technically based speculators to the long side of those markets. A weaker-than-expected U.S. retail sales report this ... (full story)