It had earlier hit an eight-week low of $1,213.81 an ounce on Tuesday. US gold futures were 0.3 percent higher at $1,227.20 an ounce. President Donald Trump on Thursday ran into resistance for calling ousted Federal Bureau of Investigation chief Comey a "showboat." The attack was swiftly rebuffed by top US senators and acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe, who pledged that an investigation into possible Trump campaign ties to Russia would proceed.
"Whatever Trump says is important and is affecting the markets and may influence gold prices for the short-term," OCBC analyst Barnabas Gan said. "But, from the second half of the year it should depend on the dollar strength and interest rate environment... We are expecting another two hikes in 2017, which should be bearish for gold." Spot gold may drop to $1,209 per ounce, as its downtrend from the April 17 high of $1,295.42 remains steady, Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao said.
Copyright Reuters, 2017