Gold rises, heads for first weekly loss in over a month

Gold bars

Gold prices rose on Friday as investors turned to safe-haven assets amid growing concerns about a widening conflict in the Middle East.

Gold futures for April delivery climbed 0.91%, or $46.4, to $5,125.1 per ounce as of 09:12 a.m. Makkah time. However, the metal is still down by around 3% this week, putting it on track to end a streak of weekly gains that lasted for more than a month.

Spot gold also increased 0.73% to $5,119.48 per ounce. Meanwhile, spot platinum rose 1.41% to $2,150.52, and spot palladium gained 1.57% to $1,662.39 per ounce.

Silver futures for May delivery also advanced 2.87% to $84.07 per ounce, while spot silver rose 2.3% to $84.06.

At the same time, the US Dollar Index, which measures the dollar against a basket of major currencies, fell 0.24% to 99.08, though it remains on track to post weekly gains of more than 1%.

Investors are also awaiting the release of the US nonfarm payrolls report later today, with expectations that the economy added around 60,000 jobs in February, following 130,000 jobs added in January.