Palladium breaks through $1,700

NEW YORK, Sept 30 (Reuters): Palladium hit a record peak on Monday, passing $1,700 an ounce, as tight supply of the autocatalyst metal stoked fears the deficit could only widen amid rising industrial demand, while a stronger dollar hurt gold prices.

Spot palladium rose 0.3 per cent to $1,685.24 an ounce by 1055 GMT, having touched a record $1,700.71.

The metal was up for a third straight session, having risen 2.4 per cent last week.

"Underlying fundamentals have been supportive all year for palladium and there is a shortfall in supply ... It will extend until the music stops, and right now there's nothing that really is calling for that music to stop," said Saxo Bank commodity strategist Ole Hansen.

"If we see some breakdown in some of the other metals, such as gold or platinum, we may start to