Gold on track for second weekly profit as dollar weakens

Gold futures rose for the eighth session in ten to the highest since June 29, as the dollar index fell to the lowest since June 24, 2016, amid a lack of data from the US, the world's largest economy.

As of 02:47 GMT, gold futures due on December 16 rose 0.43% to $1,257.50 an ounce from the opening of $1,250.80, while the dollar index shed 0.20% to 94.11 from the opening of 94.30, marking a two-year nadir. 

Gold's gains come on the back of dollar's weakness, following a spate of disappointing US data that cut the chances of a Federal Reserve rate hike later this year. 

US inflation is still below the Fed's 2% target, while political concerns mount over president Donald Trump as investigations deepen regarding Russian intervention in the last presidential elections, souring risk appetite in the markets. 

All this is weighing on the greenback and pushing investors towards safe havens such as gold, after Trump said yesterday his administration will follow what comes next regarding the Paris agreement.

Trump added that Comey's testimony ahead of the Senate Intelligence Committee was filled with lies, before moving on to the healthcare issue, saying the country doesn't have other choices, and asserting the need to repeal and replace "Obamacare", noting the program could be repealed for now and replaced later. 

Similarly, some Congress members in the Senate said they'll be vote for repealing Obamacare next week, while noting this bill represents another major legislative test for president Trump after failing to do the same thing earlier in his nascent presidency, which cast doubts about his ability to carry out his tax cuts and deregulation reforms that he pledged.