Gold price eases as stocks gain; set for best weekly jump in over four months

Gold prices edged lower on Friday on rising risk appetite buoyed by optimism over an interim US-China trade deal, but bullion was still set to register its best week in more than four months. Spot gold fell 0.1% to $1,509.56 per ounce by 0136 GMT. Prices peaked to their highest since Nov. 4 at $1,512.30 in the previous session. US gold futures were unchanged at $1,514.40 per ounce. For the week, spot gold was on track to post a jump of 2%, its best weekly rise since early August.

Asian shares climbed to 18-month peaks supported by positive trade ties between the US and China on the soon to be signed interim trade deal. China`s Commerce Ministry said on Thursday that Beijing and Washington were still in the process of completing necessary procedures while maintaining close communication to sign the deal. Gold has risen nearly 18% so far this year owing to a 17-month long tariff war.

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Weighing on gold, data on Friday showed profits at China`s industrial firms in November grew 5.4% from a year earlier, while data on Thursday showed U.S. jobless claims fell last week indicating ongoing labour market strength. The Nasdaq crossed the 9,000-point mark for the first time on Thursday as all three major Wall Street indexes posted record closing highs.
* Zambia plans to make copper mining companies account for the gold they produce as it seeks to boost revenue from its mineral resources, a senior ministry of mines official said on Thursday.

The world`s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR Gold Trust, said its holdings rose 0.4% to 892.37 tonnes on Thursday from 888.86 tonnes on Tuesday. Elsewhere, silver was flat at $17.88 per ounce, while platinum rose 0.2% to $949.19. Both the metals were poised to register their best week since late August. Palladium edged 0.1% lower to $1,899.90 per ounce.