Investing.com - Gold prices showed slight gains in overnight trade on Friday, hitting its highest level this month, concerns over investigations into U.S. President Donald Trump’s alleged ties with Russia drove investors into the safe haven asset.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold for August delivery gained $1.19, or 0.10%, to $1.246.69 a troy ounce by 3:44AM ET (7:44GMT).
Gold hit an intraday high of $1.247.65 earlier in the session, its highest level since June 30, and was on track for weekly gains of 1.5% in what would be its second consecutive weekly rise.
The Republican Party’s incapacity to achieve a replacement healthcare plan and headlines revolving around multiple congressional and federal investigations into possible ties between Trump and Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign have recently put pressure on the dollar.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, dropped 0.07% at 94.01 by 3:44AM ET (7:44GMT).
A weak dollar usually supports gold prices, as it bolsters the metal's appeal as an alternative asset and makes dollar-priced commodities more attractive to holders of other currencies.
Gold was also supported this week as both the European and Japanese central banks announced that they would continue their accommodative monetary policy.
Barring further political developments stateside, Friday was expected to be a quiet day for the precious metal as no major economic reports were scheduled for release.
Elsewhere in metals trading, silver inched up 0.06% at $16.355 a troy ounce.
Platinum fell 0.21% at $931.20 a troy ounce, while palladium lost 0.29% to $845.17 a troy ounce. Copper rose 0.63% to $2.733 a pound.