FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold was up 0.3% at $1,840.89 per ounce, as of
0119 GMT. U.S. gold futures rose 0.4% to $1,846.70.
* Bullion was up about 1.6% for the week so far.
* The dollar index eased 0.1%, making bullion more
affordable for buyers holding other currencies.
* The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment
benefits fell again last week, pointing to sustained labour
market strength and adding to fears that the Fed would keep
hiking interest rates for longer.
* Another report from the U.S. Labor Department on Thursday
showed labour costs grew much faster than previously estimated
in the fourth quarter.
* Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic said he was ready to
keep lifting rates higher if inflation did not slow, and was
still mulling how recent, stronger-than-anticipated inflation
data might shape the Fed policy.
* Money markets expect the Fed's target rate to peak at
5.457% in September.
* Euro zone inflation fell less than expected last month and
underlying price growth surged, reinforcing the case for the
European Central Bank to keep raising interest rates at a brisk
pace, data from Eurostat showed.
* Elevated interest rates dull gold's appeal as an inflation
hedge while raising the opportunity cost of holding the
non-yielding asset.
* Spot silver gained 0.8% to $21.04 per ounce,
platinum rose 0.4% to $964.10 and palladium was up
0.4% at $1,454.08.
(Reporting by Kavya Guduru in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu
Sahu)
March 3 (Reuters) - Gold prices rose on Friday, on track
for their first weekly gain in five, as the dollar eased, even
though fears persisted that the U.S. Federal Reserve would keep
raising interest rates to curb inflationary pressures.
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