New York's main oil contract fell sharply for the second day in a row as traders continue to focus on rising US crude oil supplies. New York's main contract, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for delivery in November, on Tuesday fell by $US1.42 to settle at $US97.80 a barrel. Brent North Sea crude for December delivery, the European benchmark traded in London, gained 33 US cents to close at $US109.97 a barrel. An unexpectedly sharp in increase in US crude oil inventories reported on Monday helped drive WTI below $US100 to the lowest level since July 1. Gold futures climbed to a one-month high as investors bet that a slowdown in US hiring means the Federal Reserve will maintain its bond-buying program through the end of the year. The most actively traded gold contract, for December delivery, on Tuesday rose $US26.80, or two per cent, to settle at $US1,342.60 a troy ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, the highest since September 19. A slump in the US labour market could push the Fed to maintain its stimulus program, economists say, a potential boon to gold demand. Some investors buy gold as a hedge against the chance that such easy-money policies will stoke inflation. The US economy added 148,000 jobs in September, the Labor Department said in a report that was delayed by the partial federal government shutdown earlier this month. Economists had expected a gain of 180,000. Base metals on the London Metal Exchange (LME) closed considerably higher after a weaker-than-expected reading on the US labour market in September fuelled hopes the Federal Reserve will continue commodity-supportive economic stimulus measures. At the close of open-outcry trading in the LME ring on Tuesday, LME three-month copper was 1.2 per cent higher on the day at $US7,332 a metric ton, having earlier hit its highest value in a month. Aluminium closed 1.6 per cent higher at $US1,879 a ton, while nickel rose some 3.2 per cent to $US14,825 a metric ton after hitting a nine-week high.