A day of gyrations in gold
| London
The price of gold fluctuated by more than $100 an ounce on European markets during a day of hectic trading and wild fluctuations Wednesday. The price was fixed at $695 an ounce Wednesday afternoon on the London bullion market and held this price until the close.
It showed an impressive rebound, although it was still well below the record height of $875 an ounce reached in New York on Monday after three weeks of spectacular accelerations.
Since Monday night gold has seen some sharp drops in price, causing speculation that the "gold madness" might be ending. Earlier Wednesday in Hong Kong, for instance, it closed at $635 an ounce -- down $200 from the previous day's close.
The dollar was generally firm Wednesday.