Gold surpassed $2,500 per ounce for the first time in history on Friday in the wake of rising geopolitical tensions and new data indicating a weakening US economy.
Gold contracts for December delivery reached an all-time high of $2,522.50 in the early trading hours, before shedding its gains to trade at $2,475.90 an ounce by 11:00 a.m. ET.
Spot gold posted a marginal loss of 0.5% at $2,432.86 per ounce, having hit as high as $2,477.10 — just within grasp of its all-time peak of $2,483.73 set earlier this month.
Bullion has gained about 3% so far this week, on track for its best week since April, as rising safe-haven demand from Middle East tensions and expectations of rate cuts made the metal more appealing to investors.
