Gold prices rose on Friday after a fall in the previous session, but the metal was on track to post its second weekly drop due to a rush for cash amid the widening economic fallout from the coronavirus outbreak. 

Spot gold rose 0.4% to $1,475.43 per ounce. It was down more than 3% for the week. The metals fell more than 1% on Thursday as the dollar jumped to multi-year highs and investors continued to sell assets to hoard cash. U.S. gold futures GCv1 fell 0.3% to $1,474.20 per ounce. The U.S. Federal Reserve opened the taps for central banks in nine new countries to access dollars in hopes of preventing the coronavirus epidemic from causing a global economic rout. The global economy is already in a recession as the hit to economic activity from the virus has become more widespread, according to economists polled by Reuters amid a raft of central bank stimulus actions this week. The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits surged by the most since 2012 to a 2-1/2-year high last week, as companies in the services sectors laid off workers because of the epidemic.

Source : Reuters