Gold finally ran out of puff on Friday, lower on the day but still holding above $US1,800 an ounce to notch up a fifth weekly gain.
Driving the interest was the spread of coronavirus in many US states and other countries raised the need to hedge against risk amid continued uncertainty over the economic outlook.
Traders ignored talk from equity markets that a drug found to help people infected with COVID-19 helps survival.
Comex August gold fell by $US1.90, or 0.1%, to settle at $US1,801.90 an ounce, while September silver rose 9 cents, or 0.5%, to $US19.053 an ounce.
Gold futures ended lower on Thursday, pulling back after settling Wednesday at the highest since September 2011.
For the week, gold rose roughly 0.7% from last Thursday’s settlement, which was the week’s last session due to the Independence Day holiday.
Gold has now risen for five consecutive weeks and is now up more than 18% for the year to date. Silver was up about 4% for the week.
Analysts have linked gold’s rally in part to the recent continued fall in bond yields, which have eroded or eliminated the opportunity cost tied to holding non-yielding assets such as gold.
The 10-year US Treasury note yield was lower for the week, trading at 0.619% in Friday dealings, a day after closing at its lowest since April 24. It closed at 0.641% on Friday.
The growing volatility in the bond market is starting to be noticed by investors worried about the impact of the massive rise in COVID-19 infections in the US and the impact that is already having on the economic rebound.
Meanwhile copper stood out with a solid gain last week.
Comex September copper rose 2.1% to $US2.8975 a pound, for a weekly gain of more than 5%.
Falling supplies because of the impact of COVID-19 infections on Chile and the world’s biggest copper industry and mines, has helped maintain the price surge.
Copper prices rose another 2.6% to more than $2.91 a pound in after settlement trading on Comex.
The metal has jumped more than 28% in the last three months and is now up for the year to date, showing a small gain of 4%.
A fortnight ago it was still in the red year to date.
