Gold rose modestly in Thursday trading, recovering some of the ground lost in the wake of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s testimony before Congress yesterday.

While investors continued to seek signals of when the Fed would start drawing down its monthly bond-buying, the metal benefited from traders looking to take advantage of Wednesday’s price decline.

Gold futures for August delivery gained 0.5% to $1,284.20 per ounce Thursday, according to CME Group. Gold traded as high as $1,287.90 and as low as $1,273.30. Gold bullion closed in London at $1,285, according to BullionVault.

Silver futures for August delivery dipped 0.2% to $19.38 per ounce. Thursday’s high for silver was $19.55, while the low was $19.28.

Gold and silver funds moved higher in Thursday trading.

• The SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) climbed 0.6%.
• The iShares Gold Trust (IAU) added 0.7%.
• The iShares Silver Trust (SLV) ticked up 0.2%.

Gold and silver mining ETFs dipped during the day.

• The Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF (GDX) slid 0.4%.
• The Market Vectors Junior Gold Miners ETF (GDXJ) also fell 0.4%.
• The Global X Silver Miners ETF (SIL) declined 0.5%.

Gold mining shares were mixed on Thursday.

• Agnico-Eagle Mines (AEM) fell 3.3%.
• Barrick Gold (ABX) edged up 0.3%.
• Eldorado Gold (EGO) slipped 0.3%.
• Goldcorp (GG) fell 0.6%.
• Kinross Gold (KGC) dropped 1.2%.
• Newmont Mining (NEM) rose 0.1%.
• NovaGold Resources (NG) climbed 2.1%.
• Yamana Gold (AUY) added 0.8%.

Silver mining shares were also mixed during the day.

• Coeur d’Alene Mines (CDE) dipped 0.2%.
• Hecla Mining (HL) rose 1.2%.
• Pan American Silver (PAAS) advanced 0.2%.
• Silver Wheaton (SLW) dropped 1.5%.
• Silver Standard Resources (SSRI) climbed 0.9%.

As of this writing, Christopher Freeburn did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities. Adrian Ash of BullionVault contributed to this report.