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<DOCNO> VOA19980205.2300.1189 </DOCNO>
<DOCTYPE> NEWS </DOCTYPE>
<TXTTYPE> TRANSCRIPT </TXTTYPE>
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New York spot gold slipped 50 cents to $299.50 an ounce. The price 
of silver reached its highest level in almost ten years as investors 
rushed to buy the precious metal after billionaire investor Warren 
Buffett said his Berkshire Hathaway Company now owns about a fifth 
of the world's known stockpiles. Commodity futures trader Stanton 
Ehrlich says silver prices have been in a slump for almost 20 years 
and he believe silver is now poised for a major rally. My minimum 
expectations have already been fulfilled, which is essentially $7.50, 
and I'm really looking for $10.00 and the next step it higher and 
higher. Silver for March delivery rose to $7.47 an ounce, but retreated 
to close in New York at $7.28 an ounce, a rise of 26 cents. 
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