Gold futures rose in Asian trade even as the dollar index eked out gains off November 22 lows, ahead of US inflation data later today.
As of 04:13 GMT, gold futures due in February rose 0.23% to $1,250.10 an ounce, while the dollar index barely inched higher to 97.40.
Now investors await US consumer prices data, expected with no change last month, down from a 0.3% increase in October, while core prices are estimated with a 0.2% monthly increase, same as October.
The US Treasury Department will release data on the budget, expected to show an increase in the deficit to $193.5 billion from $100.5 billion in October.