WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Gold prices climbed higher on Friday, closing up for a second straight session, and recording a fairly sharp gain for the week, as investors picked up the safe-haven asset amid rising concerns about economic growth due to Trump's tariffs.
The dollar's weakness supported the yellow metal. The dollar index dropped to a low of 103.90 before recovering to 104.05, but still remained well below the flat line, losing about 0.3%.
The dollar was under pressure due to falling yields and rising trade risks. Analysts said Trump's auto tariff threat will disrupt global trade and underpin local inflation.
Moody's has warned that new tariffs and tax cuts could widen the U.S. deficit, raising the risk of a credit downgrade.
Also, Fed officials are sending mixed signals on monetary policy as trade-linked inflation risks mount.
Goldman Sachs and BofA have raised their gold price forecasts amid trade-war tensions.
Gold futures for April settled higher by $25.50 or about 0.83% at $3,086.50 an ounce. Gold futures, up 2.15% for the week, posted their fourth straight week of gains.
Silver futures for April ended down $$0.261 or about 0.75% at $34.644, but posted a weekly gain of nearly 4%.
Copper futures for April climbed to $5.1295 per pound, before paring some gains and settling roughly flat.
Data from the Commerce Department showed consumer prices increased in line with economist estimates, core consumer prices rose by slightly more than expected.
The Commerce Department said its personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index rose by 0.3% in February, matching the increases seen in the two previous months as well as economist estimates.
The annual rate of growth by the PCE price index was 2.5% in February, unchanged from January and in line with expectations.
Meanwhile, the report said the core PCE price index, which excludes food and energy prices, climbed by 0.4% in February after rising by 0.3% in January. Economists had expected another 0.3% increase.
The annual rate of growth by the core PCE price index also accelerated to 2.8% in February from an upwardly revised 2.7% in January.
Economists had expected the year-over-year growth by the core PCE price index to tick up to 2.7% from the 2.6% originally reported for the previous month.
The report also showed real personal spending, which excludes price changes, inched up by just 0.1 percent in February after sliding by 0.6 percent in January.
Consumer sentiment in the U.S. fell by more than previously estimated in the month of March, according to revised data released by the University of Michigan on Friday.
The University of Michigan said its consumer sentiment index for March was downwardly revised to 57.0 from a preliminary reading of 57.9. Economists had expected the index to be unrevised.
The consumer sentiment index is down sharply from a reading of 64.7 in February, plunging to its lowest level since hitting 56.7 in November 2022.
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