Rewrites for EMEA morning session

By Pablo Sinha

Dec 26 (Reuters) - Silver smashed through the $75 mark for the first time on Friday, with gold and platinum also rising to all-time highs, as bets on U.S. rate cuts and geopolitical jitters fueled investor demand.

Spot gold XAU= rose 0.8% to $4,516.50 per ounce, as of 0933 GMT, after touching a record $4,530.60 earlier, while U.S. gold futures GCcv1 for February delivery climbed 1% to $4,547.70.

"Prospect of lower U.S. interest rates is still supporting demand for gold and silver, lifting both metals to new record highs," said UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo.

"Low liquidity is amplifying the volatility across all precious metals."

The yellow metal is on track for its strongest annual gain since 1979, supported by Fed policy easing, central bank buying, ETF inflows, and ongoing de-dollarisation trends.

Markets are currently pricing in two rate cuts next year on expectations of a more dovish Fed, keeping non-yielding assets like gold well-supported. FEDWATCH

On the physical demand side, gold discounts in India widened to their highest in more than six months this week, while discounts in China narrowed from last week's five-year highs. GOL/AS

Spot silver jumped 4% to $74.82 per ounce, after hitting an all-time high of $75.14, extending a meteoric rally that has seen prices soar 158% year-to-date on supply deficits, its designation as a U.S. critical mineral, and robust industrial demand.

Spot platinum XPT= rose 7.3% to $2,382.35 per ounce, having earlier hit a record high of $2,448.25, while palladium XPD= climbed 8.3% to $1,823.76, following a three-year high in the previous session.

All precious metals are headed for weekly gains, with platinum recording its strongest weekly rise on record.

Both platinum and palladium, which are key components in automotive catalytic converters, have surged on tight supply, tariff uncertainty, and rotation from gold investment demand, with platinum up roughly 170% and palladium more than 90% year-to-date.

"Platinum and palladium’s markets are much smaller than the gold market and if you have few investors seeing those metals as cheap, it doesn’t need much to trigger large moves," said Staunovo, adding that the European Commission’s plan to ease the 2035 ban on combustion engines has further lifted prices.

(Reporting by Pablo Sinha in Bengaluru; Editing by Ronojoy Mazumdar)

((Pablo.Sinha@thomsonreuters.com;))