Gold prices edged higher on Monday, holding above the key $1,800-per-ounce level, as worries over surging coronavirus cases around the world kept the safe-haven metal underpinned. Spot gold was up 0.1% at $1,800.71 per ounce. U.S. gold futures rose 0.2% to $1,804.90. More than 12.83 million people have been reported to be infected by the novel coronavirus globally and 565,626? have died, according to a Reuters tally. U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday he was not currently thinking about negotiating a “Phase 2” trade deal with China as relations between Washington and Beijing sour over the pandemic and other issues. Speculators increased their bullish positions in COMEX gold and silver contracts in the week to July 7, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) said on Friday. The dollar index held steady against a basket of major currencies. Physical gold sold at a premium in India last week for the first time this year, driven by plunging imports and a near halt in smuggling that offset the impact of high unemployment and a rise in domestic prices across Asia that could deter buyers.