The price of oil rose above $US95 as the US job market showed more signs of recovering. The government said the number of people applying for US unemployment benefits fell 21,000 to a seasonally adjusted 323,000 last week, the lowest since late September and further evidence of an improving job market. Benchmark US crude for January delivery gained $US1.59 to close at $US95.44 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. That's the highest closing price this month. Brent crude, the benchmark for an international variety of crude, gained $US2.02 to $US110.08 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange in London. Gold sank to a new four month low as signs that the US economy continues to improve triggered a new wave of selling among investors. Gold for December delivery, the most actively traded contract, fell $US14.40, or 1.1 per cent, to $US1,243.60 a troy ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. This was the lowest settlement price since July 8, when gold ended floor trading at $US1,234.90 an ounce. Base metals on the London Metal Exchange closed mixed as an upbeat reading on US factory activity stoked hopes for improved demand, countering fears about demand in the US and China that had earlier led to moderate losses. At the close of open-outcry trading in the London ring, LME 3-month copper was 0.3 per cent higher on the previous day's close at $US7,020 a metric ton. Aluminum closed 0.1 per cent higher at $US1,783 a ton, while zinc fell 0.1 per cent to $US1,888 a ton.