• April 12 Gold hit a 5-month high on Wednesday after rising nearly 2 percent in the previous session, with investors seeking refuge in safe-haven assets due to rising tensions over U.S. relations with Russia and North Korea.
Spot gold had edged up 0.1 percent to $1,275.21 per ounce by 0035 GMT, after earlier hitting its strongest since Nov.10 at 1,276.28. U.S. gold futures edged up 0.3 percent to $1,278.10.
• April 13 Gold prices eased from five-month highs on Thursday as the dollar rebounded from a slide triggered by comments from U.S. President Donald Trump that the greenback was too strong and that he would prefer the Federal Reserve keep interest rates low.
Spot gold was up 0.06 percent at $1,286.84 an ounce by 2:26 p.m. EDT (1826 GMT), having earlier hit its strongest since early November at $1,288.64 an ounce. U.S. gold futures for June delivery ended 0.8 percent higher at $1,288.50.
• "We think that gold prices could fall back in the near term if tensions cool, as seems likely, and that they will continue to fall as the Fed tightens policy later this year," Capital Economics said in a note.
• Trading volumes in wider markets have been light ahead of the long Easter holiday weekend.
• The metal was up about 2.6 percent on the week, on track for its biggest weekly gain since June, as concerns over tensions in North Korea and the Middle East kept stock markets under pressure.
• Fears of a new weapons test by North Korea as a U.S. carrier group sailed towards the region, as well as worries about the upcoming French presidential election, still kept investors on edge.
• From a technical perspective, gold faces strong near-term resistance at $1,291 an ounce, the location of a trend line declining from its 2011 record high of $1,920.30 an ounce, analysts said.
• One of the major physical gold markets, India's imports of the precious metal soared to $418 billion in March, data showed.
"The recent rise in imports is the result of the rise in demand expected during the wedding season, which has just begun, and for the Hindu festival of Akshaya Tritiya at the end of themonth," Commerzbank said in a note.
• The U.S. dollar took a heavy hit after Trump told the Wall Street Journal the dollar "is getting too strong" would eventually hurt the economy and he would prefer the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates low.
The dollar index <.DXY>, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies, was down 0.6 percent at 100.50.
• "We see a lot of safe-haven buying coming back to the market ... People are worried about currency and with conflicts around the globe, a lot of funds are coming to gold at this point of time," said Brian Lan, managing director at gold dealer GoldSilver Central in Singapore. "The market is slightly on the overbought side, but given what we have seen in the past few days, we might see prices testing $1,300.
• " Spot gold is expected to climb to $1,303 per ounce as it has broken above resistance at $1,282, according to Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao.
• "The Fed remains on track to raise rates two more times this year, but markets have yet to focus on a June increase, figuring that the Fed has time to perhaps change its forward guidance (if not its decision altogether)," said INTL FCStone analyst Edward Meir.
• China said on Friday tension over its neighbour North Korea had to be stopped from reaching an "irreversible and unmanageable stage", as a U.S. aircraft carrier group headed for the region.
Uncertainty over U.S. President Donald Trump's policy towards North Korea, which has conducted missile and nuclear tests in defiance of sanctions, have been growing since the U.S. Navy fired 59 Tomahawk missiles at a Syrian airfield last week.
• "It's very hard to decide which direction gold will go right now," one trader with a Shanghai-based bullion bank said. "If Trump is to perform some military action against North Korea, gold will definitely reach $1,300."
Reference: Reuters, AFP
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