Gold futures prices rise over 1%

Gold bars

Gold futures rose after ending last year with 64% gains, the biggest since 1979, amid expectations of further monetary easing by the US Federal Reserve.

During Friday’s session, February gold futures climbed 1.15%, or $49.60, to $4,390.70 an ounce.

Spot gold rose 1.35% to $4,377.96 an ounce, while spot silver gained about 3.35% to $74.07 an ounce.

The US dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, was steady at 98.32 at 09:30 am KSA time.

March silver futures jumped 4.2% to $73.59 an ounce, while spot platinum surged 2.6% to $2,114.17 an ounce and spot palladium rose 1.7% to $1,647.21 an ounce.

Tim Waterer, Chief Market Analyst at KCM Trade, said precious metals appear to be recouping end-of-year losses as position-squaring pressures linked to the fiscal year-end have eased, bringing market focus back to fundamentals, Reuters reported.