Base metal futures were mostly higher in Asian trade this afternoon, led by nickel, up 0.4% at the time of writing.
Nickel for future delivery had hit a year-to-date low on the London Metal Exchange yesterday of US$11,180 a tonne.
The gold price is a couple of dollars higher than this time yesterday, around $1,222/oz on the spot market.
Meanwhile, Australian gold miner Saracen Mineral Holdings (ASX: SAR) continues its ascent, hitting a fresh all-time high intraday of $2.665.
The miner today completed its acquisition of Intermin Resources' interest in the pair's Lehmans Well joint venture near Saracen's Thunderbox operation in Western Australia's northern Goldfields.
Saracen is up more than 54% year-to-date.
The gold sector managed to finish in positive territory in Toronto, with Barrick Gold (TSX: ABX) up slightly as it holds a series of investor days with Randgold Resources ahead of the pair's looming merger.
In London, most diversified majors gained about 1% yesterday, while precious metals producer Fresnillo (LSE: FRES) rose 3.38% on no news.
