Financial industry executives are warning regulators that restricting the volume of speculative trading in metals futures would drive U.S. business overseas.

But a trader told the Commodity Futures Trading Commission on Thursday that metals futures markets can be easily disrupted by big players like banks.

As gold prices have surged in an investor fever, the agency is weighing whether to impose limits on the amount of trading in gold, silver and copper futures by market players who are solely financial investors.