Gold rises on Friday, set for weekly gains

Gold prices inched higher today, Nov. 25, heading for a weekly gain backed by expectations for interest cuts by the Federal Reserve.

The dollar's retracement has kept gold well-supported as "the slower pace of rate outlook is being looked upon as a sign of peak hawkishness to further unwind the bearish positioning in the yellow metal built up since the start of the year," said IG market strategist Yeap Jun Rong.

The minutes of the Fed’s meeting this week showed that a “substantial majority” of Fed policymakers agreed it would “likely soon be appropriate” to slow the pace of interest rate hikes.

Markets expect a hike of 50 basis points (bps) in US rates in December’s meeting, after four consecutive increases of 75 bps.

Gold futures for December delivery gained 0.59% to $1,755.90 an ounce at 10:08 am Makkah time. Spot prices were steady at $1,755.31 an ounce, recording a 0.3% rise this week.

Similarly, silver futures for December delivery added 0.20% to $21.41 an ounce, while the spot price of platinum declined 0.61% to $981.90 an ounce. The spot price of palladium, however, was unchanged at $1,881.73 an ounce.

The main dollar index, which measures the performance of the US currency against a basket of six major currencies, added 0.22% to 104.42 points.