Gold set for sixth straight weekly gain

Gold prices held near record highs on Friday, heading for a sixth straight weekly gain, after trade war fears boosted safe-haven demand.

Investors are now awaiting U.S. nonfarm payrolls data for clues on the strength of the economy.

Spot gold was up 0.1% at $2,859.59 an ounce by 00:38 GMT, up more than 2% so far this week. It hit an all-time high of $2,882.16 earlier in the week. U.S. gold futures rose 0.3% to $2,884.20, Reuters reported.

Despite hitting record highs for five straight sessions, on the back of escalating trade tensions between the United States and China, gold prices fell 1% in the previous session, as the dollar strengthened ahead of the U.S. jobs report.