Investing.com – Gold prices edged higher on Tuesday amid ongoing dollar weakness, while rising geopolitical uncertainties supported sentiment.
Gold futures for February delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose by $4, or 0.31%, to $1,313.40 a troy ounce.
Gold prices rose to three-month highs and remained on track to notch their longest winning streak since the end of the gold standard in 1971 supported largely by a dollar slump to three-month lows.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, fell 0.42% to 91.60.
Gold is sensitive to a weaker U.S. dollar – a weaker dollar makes gold cheaper for holders of foreign currency, thus, raising investor demand for the precious metal.
The uptick in gold prices come as data showed traders continued to raise their bullish bets on the yellow metal.
U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) on Friday reported that hedge funds and money managers had increased their net long stance in gold in the week ended Dec. 29 to 135,900, up 22,200.
Also adding to sentiment on gold prices was a rise in geopolitical uncertainty amid protest in Iran.
In other precious metal trade, silver futures rose 0.26% to $17.19 a troy ounce, while platinum futures gained 0.83% to $946.10.
Copper traded at $3.27, down 0.74%, while natural gas rose 3.42% to $3.05.
The uptick in natural gas comes amid reports temperatures in the US dipped to all-time lows on New Year's Day, pushing natural gas consumption to 143 billion cubic feet, topping the previous high of 142 billion from four years ago.