Gold rose on Monday, hovering just below last week's 13-month high as the US dollar turned lower, while a fall in average US earnings lessened expectations the Federal Reserve could raise interest rates at its next policy meeting. Spot gold was up 0.6 percent at $1,266.70 an ounce by 3:12 pm EST (2012 GMT). The metal had peaked at $1,279.60 on Friday, its strongest since February 2015, before slipping on US data.
US gold futures for April delivery settled down 0.5 percent at $1,264 per ounce. A pitched battle over the right path for US interest rates is expected at next week's Fed policy-setting meeting. "Gold is catching a safe-haven bid and that's enabling it to maintain strength at the same time the dollar is strong," said Joe Foster, portfolio manager and strategist of VanEck International Investors Gold Fund in New York, when the dollar was in positive territory against a basket of major currencies. "People are starting to get nervous about the financial system and financial risk." Palladium also had a strong day and rose 4.2 percent to $578.50 an ounce, the highest since November 12. Spot silver rose 0.9 percent to 15.63 an ounce.
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