Gold up on weaker U.S. equities, dollar

Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose on Thursday as the U.S. dollar and U.S. equities weakened.

The most active gold contract for February delivery rose 3.2 U.S. dollars, or 0.27 percent, to settle at 1,199.80 dollars per ounce.

The precious metal's trading volume was high as the U.S. Dollar Index, a measure of the dollar against a basket of major currencies, fell by 0.48 percent to 101.24 as of 1830 GMT.

Gold and the dollar typically move in opposite directions, which means if the dollar goes up, gold futures will fall as gold, measured by the dollar, becomes more expensive for investors.

The U.S. equities market also gave support to the precious metal as the U.S. Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 73.07 points, or 0.37 percent as of 1830 GMT.

Analysts note that when equities post losses, the precious metal usually goes up, as investors are looking for a safe haven, while the opposite is true when U.S. equities post gains.

Gold was prevented from rising further as a report released on Thursday by the U.S. Department of Labor showed initial jobless claims increasing by 10,000 to a 247,000 level during the week of Jan. 7.

Analysts note that this figure was within expectations but on the low end of expectations, putting slight pressure on the precious metal.

Traders are waiting for the release of the U.S. producer price index, and retail sales report on Friday.

Silver for March delivery fell 0.3 cents, or 0.02 percent, to close at 16.825 dollars per ounce. Platinum for April delivery added 8.3 dollars, or 0.85 percent, to close at 984.70 dollars per ounce. Endit