Mumbai, 2 Mar (Commoditiescontrol): Gold started March on a positive note, with prices rising to a two-month high on Friday after muted economic data lifted expectations of a U.S. interest rate cut by June.
Spot gold rose 2.1% to $2,086.21 per ounce, the highest since late December, and was on track for a second straight weekly rise. U.S. gold futures settled about 2% higher at $2,095.7.
Benchmark U.S. 10-year Treasury yields and the dollar index retreated after the data, making gold more attractive.
Data showed U.S. manufacturing slumped further in February and the University of Michigan's surveys of consumers was also weak.
Another set of data on Thursday indicated that the annual increase in U.S. inflation in January was the smallest in nearly three years, keeping a June rate cut from the Federal Reserve on the table. Lower interest rates tend to boost demand for non-yielding gold.
Investors also kept a tab on news that New York Community Bancorp found "material weaknesses" in internal controls related to its loan review, adding to commercial real estate exposure woes.
Spot silver rose 2.6% to $23.26. Spot platinum rose 1.2% to $886.15, while palladium was up 1.4% at $955.50. Both eased on a weekly basis.
Northam Platinum's said platinum mining companies in South Africa are caught up in the worst crisis in three decades as prices plummet.
(By Commoditiescontrol Bureau: 09820130172)
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