CHICAGO, Dec. 27 (Xinhua) -- Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange ended higher for the third straight session on Thursday, as the precious metal was boosted by a weaker U.S. dollar.
The most active gold contract for February delivery rose 8.10 U.S. dollars, or 0.64 percent, to settle at 1,281.1 dollars per ounce.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the buck against six rivals, went down 0.58 percent to 96.48 as of 1830 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.
As for other precious metals, silver for March delivery added 18.70 cents, or 1.24 percent, to settle at 15.310 dollars per ounce. Platinum for April delivery was down 3.50 dollars, or 0.43 percent, to close at 801.40 dollars per ounce. Enditem
