Gold Soars to 13-Month High as Dollar Weakens

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By Jacob Maslow

Gold surged to a 13-month peak on Friday before settling a bit lower, as the euro gained against the dollar after the European Central Bank indicated it was done cutting interest rates for the time being.

After ramping up asset purchases and announcing deeper rate cuts as part of moves to shore up economies in the euro zone, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi indicated on Thursday that this week’s rate reduction would be the last, at least for now.

Gold rose to as high as $1,282.51 an ounce during intraday trading, its strongest since February 3, 2015, but closed a little bit lower at $1,270.20 by 0706 GMT.

The precious metal gained 1.5% on Thursday, on track for its second weekly rise. Since the start of the year, gold has gained approximately 20%.

On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold for April delivery eased 0.1% to trade at $1,271 an ounce, after peaking at $1,287.80 during the day.

Australia’s biggest gold producer, Newcrest Mining Ltd., closed 3.3% higher, while Hong Kong’s Zijin Mining Group Co. gained as much as 7.4% on Friday.

In related metals trading, silver gave up 0.3% to trade at $15.54 an ounce, while platinum added 0.2% to trade at $977.99. Palladium also gained, tacking on 0.3 percent trade at $572.40.

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