• Gold prices held steady on Friday and were on track for their fourth weekly gain in a row, buoyed by a weaker dollar ahead of the inauguration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump later in the day. Spot gold <XAU=> was up 0.1percent at $1,206.26 per ounce by 0550 GMT, while U.S. gold futures <GCcv1> climbed 0.4 percent to $1,206.60 per ounce. "There is a bit of safe-haven buying ahead of Trump's inauguration," said Ronald Leung, chief dealer at Lee Cheong Gold Dealers in Hong Kong.
Trump's protectionist statements, with mixed promises of tax cuts and infrastructure spending, have increased demand for gold as a safe-haven.
"The incoming U.S. administration is still a relatively unknown factor, certainly in comparison to other incoming administrations in recent decades," HSBC analyst James Steel said in a note.
The metal has risen more than 7 percent since dropping to its lowest in more than 10-1/2 months in December. Spot gold may approach resistance at $1,219 per ounce again as it failed to break support at $1,196, according to Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao. [nL4N1FA188] Better-than-expected jobs and housing data reinforced the view that the U.S. economy is sufficiently robust to warrant rate rises, turning back recent falls for the dollar and pushing 10-year bond yields to their highest since Jan. 3.
Reference: Reuters
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