* Falling dollar drives gold to all-time highs * U.S. crude oil crosses $71 a barrel * Copper prices up 2 pct By Barani Krishnan NEW YORK, Oct 6 (Reuters) - Gold prices hit record highs on Tuesday as the plumbing dollar drove inflation-wary investors to hedge in the precious metal and other commodities. Spot gold, which reflects the price of bullion, was bid at an all-time high of $1,040.55 an ounce in New York by 10:25 a.m. EDT (1425 GMT), against Monday's late trade of $1,016.65. [GOL/] In U.S. gold futures, the most active contract, December, jumped $25.40 to a record $1,043.20 an ounce, surpassing the previous record of $1,033.90 set in March 2008. The 19-commodity Reuters-Jefferies CRB index rose about 1 percent to its highest level in three sessions. Analysts expect gold to climb higher in the near- to medium-term if the dollar suffers further from U.S. monetary easing and strengthening in rival currencies. "We'll see further highs over the next three to six months," said Michael Jansen, precious metals analyst at JP Morgan in London. "I think people are prepared to be short of dollar and long of other currencies, including gold." Thomas Winmill, portfolio manager at Midas Fund in New York, added, "This is basically the beginning of a many-step process toward $1,200 gold in the first quarter. The fiscal and monetary factors are just going to become larger and larger in investors' mind." The dollar fell after an interest rate hike in Australia and rising equity prices bolstered expectations that the global economy was recovering, diminishing safe-haven demand for the U.S. currency. Adding to pressure on the dollar was a British newspaper report that Gulf Arab states were in secret talks to abandon the U.S. currency in oil trade. Big oil-producing countries denied the report. Oil prices rose above $71 per barrel on Tuesday as the dollar slipped against major currencies and after a U.S. government agency raised its forecast of world oil demand for the fourth quarter. U.S. crude for November rose $1.54 to a session high of $71.95 per barrel. Brent crude was up $1.70 to session high of $69.74. Copper prices were up more than 2 percent, breaching the key resistance level of $6,000 a tonne in London, as the dollar's weakness made the metal cheaper for holders of other currencies. Copper for three-months delivery on the London Metal Exchange traded as high as $6,156 a tonne, against Monday's close of $5,920. In New York, U.S. copper futures for December rose 7.2 cents to a session peak of $2.7990 a lb. Some analysts expressed concern that prices of the industrial metal had overshot supply-demand fundamentals. LME copper supplies have climbed since mid-July, reversing a trend of almost constant falls earlier this year. Copper inventories in LME warehouses rose 1,200 tonnes to reach 346,425 tonnes. On the agricultural side, corn futures in Chicago were up 7 percent to trade near their highest level in two months, as the dollar's weakness combined with concerns that freezing weather forecast for this weekend may hurt late-maturing U.S. crops. Corn for December delivery climbed 26 cents to as high as $3.67-1/2 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade. Prices at 9:45 a.m. EDT (1445 GMT) Last Change Pct 2008 YTD Chg Close % Chg US crude 71.81 1.4 2.0 44.60 61.0 Brent crude 69.58 1.54 2.3 45.59 52.6 US gold 1040.30 22.50 2.2 884.30 17.6 Gold 1040.55 23.90 2.4 878.20 18.5 US Copper 279.45 6.75 2.5 139.50 100.3 LME Copper 6140.00 220.00 3.7 3060.00 100.7 Dollar 76.17 -0.47 -0.6 81.15 -6.1 CRB 259.650 3.420 1.3 229.540 13.1 US corn 3.6500 0.2350 6.9 4.07 -10.3 US soybeans 9.0750 0.2250 2.5 9.7225 -6.7 US wheat 4.5825 0.1550 3.5 6.1075 -25.0 US Coffee 133.60 4.15 3.2 112.05 19.2 US Cocoa 3236 -4.00 -0.1 2665 21.4 US Sugar 24.46 0.27 1.1 11.81 107.1 US silver 17.365 0.830 5.0 11.295 53.7 US platinum 1320.60 18.80 1.4 941.50 40.3 US palladium 306.90 3.60 1.2 188.70 62.6 (Editing by Lisa Shumaker)

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