July 24 (Reuters) - Gold held steady on Friday en route to
its best week in more than three months, driven by an escalation
in U.S.-China tensions, with investors also looking for a hedge
against possible inflation as hopes for more stimulus measures
grow.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold XAU= was little changed at $1,885.62 per ounce
by 0041 GMT, after hitting its highest since September 2011 at
$1,897.16 on Thursday. U.S. gold futures GCv1 eased 0.3% to
$1,884.60.
* Prices have risen more then 4% so far this week, their
biggest weekly percentage gain since April 10.
* China said the U.S. move to close its Houston consulate
this week had "severely harmed" relations and warned it "must"
retaliate, without providing details of what it would do.
* Gold is often used as a safe store of value during times
of political and financial uncertainty.
* U.S. Senate Republicans will unveil their proposal for a
fresh round of coronavirus aid next week, including more direct
payments to Americans, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell
said. * Coronavirus cases continue to rise in the United States,
while more than 15.35 million people have been reported to be
infected by the virus globally. * The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits
unexpectedly rose last week for the first time in nearly four
months, data showed on Thursday. * Asian markets are set to open mostly lower as China vowed
to retaliate against a U.S. order to close one of its
consulates. MKTS/GLOB
* Silver XAG= fell 0.3% to $22.66 per ounce, while
platinum XPT= rose 0.9% to $913.86 and palladium XPD= was
steady at $2,125.89.
DATA/EVENTS (GMT)
0800 EU Markit Mfg, Serv, Comp Flash PMIs July
1345 US Markit Mfg, Serv, Comp Flash PMIs July
1400 US New Home sales-Units June