London — Gold rose on Friday, notching up to its second week of gains after shrugging off slightly better-than-expected US third-quarter GDP data amid firm demand from Asia. Spot gold was up 0.3% to $1,271.90 an ounce at 2.45pm GMT and is up 0.5% this week. US gold futures slipped 0.2% to $1,267.10. The US economy grew by 2.9% in the third quarter, outpacing analysts’ consensus forecast of 2.5%, strengthening the case for an interest rate increase and making non-yielding assets such as gold less attractive while boosting the dollar and US treasuries. The reading of the world’s biggest economy dragged gold to a session low of $1,262.04 but the price rebounded shortly after. "The GDP data was not overwhelmingly strong, the rise was marginal and the contribution to underlying strength wasn’t very strong," said Carsten Fritsch, commodity analyst at Commerzbank. "The fact that we have strong physical demand probably puts a floor to the price." Demand for bullion in India is expected to p...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.