Gold scores a Weekly Gain of nearly 3%

Gold futures climbed for a third straight session Friday to tally a weekly gain of nearly 3% as a sharp drop in the U.S. dollar buoyed investment demand.

Gold for April delivery GCJ5, +1.09% on Comex rose $15.60, or 1.3%, to settle at $1,184.60 an ounce. Prices scored weekly gain of 2.8%, based on the most-active contracts. They settled at their highest level since March 5.

May silver SIK5, +3.79% jumped 76.9 cents, or 4.8%, to end at $16.883 an ounce, with prices around 9% higher for the week.

Gold climbed on the heels of a softening U.S. dollar and “focus in Europe turning back from its political problems to the [European Central Bank] stimulus rollout,” said Colin Cieszynski, chief market strategist at CMC Markets, in a note.

The LBMA Gold Price replaced the historic London Gold Fix on Friday. The first LBMA Gold Price settled at $1,171.75.

Gold futures posted increases over the previous two trading sessions. Late Wednesday, the Fed policy statement and Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen were interpreted as signaling the central bank would raise rates more slowly than market participants had anticipated. Some analysts expected that to cause a pause in the dollar’s rally.

On Friday, the ICE U.S. dollar index DXY, -1.28% was down about 1.6%, and traded roughly 2.5% lower for the week. A weaker dollar often provides support for dollar-denominated commodities, including gold, as investors seek out alternative investments.

In other Comex trading, April platinum PLJ5, +1.60% rose $21.60, or 1.9%, to end at $1,141.20 an ounce, tacking on about 2.3% for the week, while June palladium PAM5, +1.47% rose $13.30, or 1.7%, to $779.10 an ounce, down around 1.2% for the week.

May copper HGK5, +3.42% added 10.1 cents, or 3.8%, to $2.761 a pound—up roughly 3.5% for the week.

Source: MarketWatch