Investing.com –Gold prices were at a two-month high on Friday as a weak dollar continued to support the precious metal despite thin trading in the last business day of the year.
Comex gold futures rose 0.32% to $1,301.30 a troy ounce by 8:33 AM ET (13:33 GMT) Friday, its highest level since October 16.
Futures were on the rise for a fourth straight session and were on track for weekly gains of around 1.6% and were up nearly 11% for all of 2017, its best annual rally in seven years.
Gold has been benefiting from weakness in the dollar, which some analysts suggest is a sell off after U.S. President Donald Trump signed off on the tax overhaul.
Despite Trump finally signing off on the long-anticipated tax reform in what was the first major legislative achievement of his presidency and the gradual path of monetary policy tightening from the Federal Reserve throughout 2017, the dollar index heads towards the end of the year with annual losses of 10%.
A weaker greenback makes the precious metal more affordable for holders of foreign currency.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, fell 0.42% to 91.95, its lowest level since September.
Elsewhere in metals trading, silver rose 0.19% at $16.955 a troy ounce, platinum gained 0.57% at $936.60 a troy ounce, palladium slumped 0.99% to $1,052.95 a troy ounce, while copper lost 0.86% to $3.280.00 a pound.