Gold remained steady on Friday with global political uncertainty, the upcoming elections in Europe in particular, seen supporting prices of the yellow metal, driving the metal to its best quarter in a year.

Spot gold was little changed at $1,242.90 per ounce at 0716 GMT. It was on track to finish March down about 0.5 per cent, its first monthly decline this year.

However, spot prices were set for their best quarter since the quarter ended March last year, gaining about 8 per cent.

“In the short term, factors including a strengthening dollar could pull prices down to around the $1,230 an ounce range," said Yuichi Ikemizu, head of commodity trading at Standard Bank in Tokyo.

“However, the fundamentals are still bullish for gold, especially with the upcoming elections in France and elsewhere in Europe. So prices are not really expected to go much lower from here."

US gold futures fell 0.2 per cent to $1,242. Spot gold may fall into the range of $1,235-$1,236 per ounce, as suggested by its wave pattern and a Fibonacci ratio analysis, according to Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao.

The dollar index was up 0.1 per cent at 100.51, near a two-week high hit earlier in the session, supported by solid US economic data.

US economic growth slowed less than previously reported in the fourth quarter as robust consumer spending provided a boost that was partially offset by the largest gain in imports in two years.

The greenback was further supported by comments from New York Federal Reserve President William Dudley on Thursday that reinforced the notion that core US central bankers are confidently on the road to tighter monetary policy after having hiked interest rates twice in three months.

Meanwhile, holdings of SPDR Gold Trust , the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, which is seen as a gauge of investment sentiment, reported an outflow of 1.2 tonnes on Thursday.

However, the potential for the rise of the far right in European elections this year, along with British Prime Minister Theresa May formally triggering divorce proceedings from the EU on Wednesday is seen enhancing gold's appeal as a safe-haven investment.

Spot silver rose 0.1 per cent to $18.09 per ounce, having touched $18.29, in the previous session, its highest in four weeks.

Platinum rose 0.3 per cent to $945.80 per ounce, after hitting its lowest in just over two weeks at $941 earlier in the session. The metal was also set to end the month about 7.6 per cent lower, which would mark its worst monthly performance since August 2016.

Palladium eased 0.2 per cent to $792.43 an ounce and has risen over 16 per cent this quarter.

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