CHICAGO, Nov. 29 (Xinhua) -- Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange edged slightly higher on Thursday, as the precious metal was boosted by a weaker U.S. dollar as well as the loss in benchmark U.S. stock indices.
The most active gold contract for February 2019 delivery went up 0.6 U.S. dollar, or 0.05 percent, to close at 1,230.4 dollars per ounce.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the buck against six rivals, went down 0.05 percent to 96.78 as of 1855 GMT.
Gold usually moves in opposite directions with the U.S. dollar, which means if the dollar goes strong, gold futures will fall as gold, priced in U.S. dollar, becomes expensive for investors using other currencies.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 27.59 points, or 0.11 percent as of 1730 GMT. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq also followed Dow's decline. When equities post losses, investors may begin to buy safe-haven assets, such as gold.
As for other precious metals, silver for March 2019 delivery was down 5.3 cents, or 0.37 percent, to settle at 14.402 dollars per ounce. Platinum for January 2019 dropped 5.4 dollars, or 0.65 percent, to close at 820.9 dollars per ounce.
