Gold edges up, holds near 2-month peak in thin-volume trade

Gold prices inched up on Monday, holding below a near two-month peak hit in the previous session, as investors hedged against risks in thin year-end trading after U.S. military strikes in the Middle East.

FUNDAMENTALS
Spot gold rose 0.3% to $1,514.56 per ounce by 0112 GMT. Prices hit their highest since Nov. 1 at $1,515.09 on Friday. U.S. gold futures were unchanged at $1,517.50.

Gold prices have risen about 18% this year, mainly due to the 17-month-long Sino-U.S. tariff war and its impact on global economic growth.

U.S. officials said on Sunday that air strikes in Iraq and Syria against an Iran-backed militia group were successful, but warned that "additional actions" might still be taken in the region to defend U.S. interests.

President Donald Trump was briefed by his top national security advisers on the air strikes against what U.S. officials said was an Iran-sponsored group in Iraq and Syria, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said.

Investors also kept a close eye on developments regarding a trade agreement between Washington and Beijing after Trump last week said there would be a signing ceremony for the first phase of the deal.

Indicative of investor sentiment, SPDR Gold Trust, the world`s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its holdings rose 0.1% to 893.25 tonnes on Friday from 892.37 tonnes on Thursday.

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Gold prices flipped to a premium last week in India due to limited supplies even as demand remained subdued, while other Asian regions barely saw any holiday purchasing.

Among other precious metals, silver rose 0.9% to$17.91 per ounce, while platinum climbed 0.8% to $952. Palladium edged 0.2% higher to $1,909.19 per ounce.