Gold stayed within a tight range on Friday after China's second-quarter growth report and a stronger euro prompted a morning rally.
The most actively traded contract, for August delivery, gained 1.7 per cent, or $US26.70, to settle at $US1,592.00 per troy ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"Despite giving up a portion of the gains, the rally in gold ... is pretty robust," said Jim Steel, senior vice president and metals analyst for HSBC.
The contract climbed as high as $US1,596.50 earlier in the trading day on hopes that slowed growth in China would prompt the Chinese government to implement monetary easing measures.
China's gross domestic product (GDP) grew 7.6 per cent in the second quarter of the year, down from 8.1 per cent in the first quarter.
Some investors are hoping the declining growth will lead to benchmark interest rate cuts in China, which would add liquidity to the market.
Increased liquidity can be a boon for gold, because investors can use hard assets to guard their wealth against potential inflation.
The euro also climbed on Friday and was recently trading up 0.3 per cent at $US1.22418 against the USdollar. Because gold is traded in US dollars, investors using other currencies can buy gold more cheaply when the dollar is weaker.
Gold's rally could continue next week if it is able to break above $US1,602.00, this week's high, Steel said.
Silver, platinum and palladium followed gold higher, though their gains were not as strong.
Settlements: August delivery gold finished at $US1,592.00, up $26.70; September silver ended at $US27.369, up 20.8 US cents; October platinum settled at $US1,435.20, up $US22.70; September palladium closed at $US585.65, up $us10.85.
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