Gold futures settle lower for the session, up for the month

Gold futures settled with a modest loss on Friday, but climbed by nearly 4% for the month. "Rising fears over the coronavirus outbreak and negative impacts it may have on global economic growth stimulated appetite for gold this week," said Lukman Otunugua, senior research analyst at FXTM. The precious metal could extend gains in the week ahead as "virus concerns accelerate demand" for safe haven assets," with prices potentially targeting $1,600 "in the short to medium term as risk aversion remains a dominant market theme," he said. April gold fell $1.30, or 0.08%, to settle at $1,587.90 an ounce. The most-active April contract rose about 3.8% for the month, according to FactSet data.

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