Other precious metals have also been hit by the strength in the dollar and slump in gold, and were headed for sharp annual declines. Spot gold edged up 0.1 percent to $1,062.20 an ounce by 0645 GMT on Thursday. Volumes were thin ahead of the new year holiday on Friday. It slid to a near-six-year low of $1,045.85 earlier in December.
"Next year too gold will be lower as US interest rates will keep going higher," said a bullion trader in Hong Kong, adding that this will put pressure on other precious metals as well. Gold could drop to $1,000 or below but could recover slightly in the second half of the year, he said. The outlook for the metal does not look bullish heading into the next year. Gold prices have been influenced a great deal by US monetary policy. The Federal Reserve increased US interest rates for the first time in nearly a decade in December, and is expected to hike rates at a gradual pace in 2016.