WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Gold futures ended higher on Wednesday, as traders chose to stay away from riskier assets due to rising concerns about the outlook for global economic growth. Worries about political uncertainty in the U.S. also contributed to the yellow metal's rise.
Gold prices stood firm despite the dollar gaining in strength against most major currencies, after earlier weakness. The dollar rose to about 96.50, gaining about 0.8%, after staying a bit subdued early on in the session amid speculation the Federal Reserve might pause monetary tightening sometime soon.
Gold futures for February ended up $2.80, or 0.2%, at $1,284.10 an ounce, the highest settlement price since June 14, 2018.
On Monday, gold futures ended at $1,281.30 an ounce, down $1.70 from earlier session.
Silver futures for March settled at $15.649 an ounce, gaining $0.149 in the session.
Copper futures for March ended at $2.623 per pound, down marginally from previous close.
A report from Markit that showed Chinese manufacturing activity to have contracted for the first time in 19 months has raised fears about global growth. The Caixin/Markit manufacturing PMI dropped to 49.7 from 50.2 in November amid ongoing trade frictions between the world's two largest economies.
Elsewhere, Eurozone manufacturing PMI stood at 51.4 in December, down from November's 51.8 and the lowest since February 2016, raising concerns over the global growth outlook.
As the U.S. government shutdown enters its 12th day, President Donald Trump has invited Republican and Democratic congressional leaders to a border security briefing later today. However, it was not clear who would attend the meeting.
Looking ahead, Friday's U.S. December jobs report as well as the annual meeting of the American Economic Association, where Fed Chair Powell is interviewed with predecessors Janet Yellen and Ben Bernanke, may offer further clues on the outlook for U.S. interest rates.
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