Investing.com – Gold prices traded close to session highs supported by ongoing safe-haven demand as underlying geopolitical tensions and U.S.-China trade-war fears persisted.
Gold futures for June delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose by $5.30, or 0.39%, to $1,347.10 a troy ounce, and remained close to session highs of $1,350.10.
The White House is planning to ramp up trade pressure on China by threatening to block Chinese technology investment in the United States, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing officials familiar with the matter.
That added to safe-haven demand, supporting an uptick in gold prices, as geopolitical tensions persisted after Russia accused the UK of staging the reported chemical attack in Syria.
Dollar weakness also supported an uptick in the gold prices, which are set to notch a second-straight weekly gain.
The dollar struggled to pare losses this week despite the Federal Reserve releasing somewhat hawkish minutes of its March meeting this week.
Dollar-denominated assets such as gold are sensitive to moves in the dollar – A fall in the dollar makes gold cheaper for holders of foreign currency, raising demand for the precious metal.
In other precious metal trade, silver futures rose 0.98% to $16.64 a troy ounce, while platinum futures fell 0.25% to $932.50 an ounce.
Copper fell 0.21 % to $3.07.