Gold hovers near record highs, posts weekly gains

Gold prices rose to near record highs, heading for weekly gains, driven by a U.S. interest rate cut and signs of further cuts coming.

Spot gold rose 0.2% to $2,592.17 an ounce, up 0.6% since the start of the week.

Gold hit a record high of $2,599.92 on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve began easing monetary policy by cutting interest rates by half a percentage point. The bank also forecast another cut of the same amount by the end of the year, with another full percentage point cut possible next year.

In other precious metals, spot silver rose about 1% to $31.09 an ounce, while palladium gained 0.6% to $1,086.75. While platinum settled at $988.30, down 0.9% since the beginning of the week.