Gold stalls

Reuters

Bengaluru

Gold prices held firm on Friday on political uncertainty in the United States, but were set for their fourth straight weekly loss due to expectations of an interest rate hike by the U.S. Federal Reserve in June.

Spot gold was unchanged at $1,224.63 per ounce at 0103 GMT. It hit an eight-week low of $1,213.81 an ounce on Tuesday.

U.S. gold futures were also steady at $1,224.50 an ounce. President Donald Trump on Thursday ran into resistance for calling ousted FBI chief James Comey a "showboat."

The attack that was swiftly contradicted by top U.S. senators and acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe, who pledged that an investigation into possible Trump campaign ties to Russia would proceed.

New applications for U.S. jobless benefits unexpectedly fell last week, while producer prices rebounded strongly in April, pointing to a tightening labour market and rising inflation that could spur the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates in June.