BENGALURU: Gold firmed on Wednesday on expectations of fewer interest rate rises in the United States which partially offset the impact of a firmer dollar and a rally in stock markets on hopes of a thaw in US-China trade relations.

Spot gold was up 0.1 per cent at $1,243.55 per ounce at 1218 GMT. US gold futures rose 0.1pc to $1,248.60 per ounce.

Bullion touched its highest level in five-months at $1,250.55 earlier this week and has recovered about 8pc from a 19-month low of $1,159.96 in mid-August.

Gold is likely to consolidate further below the 200-day moving average, around $1,255 at present, Commerzbank analysts said in a weekly note.

Indicative of investor interest in gold, holdings of SPDR Gold Trust, the world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, rose to the highest since late August on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, spot palladium was trading at a premium to gold, with prices of the autocatalyst metal rising about 0.5pc to $1,249.50 an ounce.

Spot silver was up 0.8pc at $14.64 per ounce, while platinum was also 0.8pc higher at $787.80 per ounce.

Published in Dawn, December 13th, 2018