Gold futures dipped into negative territory Friday morning but remained on track for a weekly gain and a finish above $1,200 an ounce, as metals continued to take in stride the U.S. Federal Reserve’s decision this month to begin tapering its bond purchases.
Gold for February delivery was down $1.80, or 0.1%, at $1,210.50 U.S. an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange. However, the contract was on track for a 0.6% weekly gain, according to FactSet.
March silver fell eight cents, or 0.4%, to $19.84 U.S. an ounce but was up 2% on the week.
It has been a brutal year for gold, with the metal down by around 28% since Jan. 1, while silver has dropped around 34% over the same period. Expectations the Fed would begin to scale back its stimulus program helped sink gold earlier this year, while a strong run by equities contributed to flows out of gold, analysts noted.
In other metals trading, January platinum rose $7.30, or 0.5%, to $1,370 U.S. an ounce, while March palladium added $6.25, or 0.9%, to $707 U.S. an ounce.
High-grade copper for March delivery fell two cents, or 0.6%, to $3.38 U.S. a pound.
