WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Gold futures settled notably higher on Friday, snapping a six-day losing streak, as the dollar weakened after data showing a slowdown in PCE inflation raised hopes of a few rate cuts in 2025.
Persisting concerns about geopolitical tensions and political uncertainty in some major European nations also pushed up the demand for the safe-haven commodity.
The dollar index dropped to 107.59, losing about 0.75%.
Gold futures for December closed up $36.50 or about 1.4% at $2,628.70 an ounce. Gold futures shed a little over 1% in the week.
Silver futures for December settled higher by $0.566 or nearly 2% at $29.660 an ounce. Silver futures shed about 3.25% in the week.
Copper futures for December climbed to $4.0405 per pound, gaining $0.0200 or 0.5%.
Data from the Commerce Department said the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index inched up by 0.1% in November after rising by 0.2% in October. Economists had expected prices to increase by another 0.2%.
The annual rate of growth by the PCE price index accelerated to 2.4% in November from 2.3% in October, slightly slower than the 2.5% jump economists had expected.
The annual rate of growth by the core PCE price index in November came in at 2.8%, unchanged from October, while economists had expected an acceleration to 2.9%.
The report said personal income rose by 0.3% in November after climbing by an upwardly revised 0.7% in October. Economists had expected personal income to rise by 0.4% compared to the 0.6% increase originally reported for the previous month.
Meanwhile, personal spending climbed by 0.4% in November after rising by a downwardly revised 0.3% in October. Economists had expected personal spending to grow by 0.5% compared to the 0.4% advance originally reported for the previous month.
The University of Michigan released a report showing consumer sentiment in the U.S. improved in line with its preliminary estimate in the month of December. The report said the consumer sentiment index for December was unrevised from the preliminary estimate of 74.0, in line with economists' expectations. The consumer sentiment index increased from 71.8 in November.
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