Gold rises slightly amid stock market rally

CHICAGO, Dec. 15 (Xinhua) -- Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange settled slightly up on Friday amid strong stock market rally.

The most active gold contract for February delivery rose 40 U.S. cents, or 0.03 percent, to close at 1257.50 dollars per ounce.

While the U.S. Federal Reserve announced on Wednesday the third and final interest rise this year, it also hinted at three rate hikes in 2018. The gradual approach was interpreted by market observers as "dovish," and to some degree supported the gold futures.

On Thursday, the European Central Bank, the Bank of England and the Swiss National Bank all announced decisions to leave their key interest rates unchanged. The move boosted the U.S. dollar.

The U.S. Dollar Index, a measure of the greenback against a basket of other major currencies, rose 0.27 percent to 93.94 as of 1821 GMT.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Dow Jones Industrial Average went up 141.40 points, or 0.58 percent, to 24,650.06 points as of 1831 GMT. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq also followed Dow's rally.

A firm dollar and strong equities curbed the rise of gold.

As for other precious metals, silver for March delivery edged up 12.9 cents, or 0.81 percent, to settle at 16.063 dollars per ounce. Platinum for January rose 8.2 dollars, or 0.93 percent, to close at 889.40 dollars per ounce. Enditem