Gold futures settle higher, but tally a fourth straight weekly decline

Gold futures ended higher on Friday, but tallied their fourth straight weekly decline amid strength in the U.S. dollar. Next week, action in the dollar may continue to be a big driver for the gold market, said Colin Cieszynski, chief market strategist at SIA Wealth Management. “There are a number of key inflation reports coming which could move the market, including Chinese inflation numbers due on the weekend, and U.S. consumer and producer price inflation reports during the week.” August gold rose $2.60, or nearly 0.2%, to settle at $1,742.30 an ounce. For the week, prices based on the most-active contract fell 3.3%, FactSet data show.

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