Gold on course for best year in a decade

Dec 31: Gold edged higher on Thursday, heading for its best year in a decade, as a weaker U.S. dollar outweighed pressure from a top Republican lawmaker's remark that a bill to increase U.S. pandemic aid checks was unlikely to get Senate approval soon.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Spot gold rose 0.1% to $1,894.66 per ounce by 0103 GMT. U.S. gold futures climbed 0.3% to $1,899.10.


* In a blow to U.S. President Donald Trump's demand for an increase in coronavirus relief checks to $2,000, Republican Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell refused a quick vote on the bill, saying it had "no realistic path to quickly pass the Senate."

* Gold has risen more than 24% this year, its best since 2010, as unprecedented stimulus measures and low-interest rates to cushion economies from the pandemic's blow boosted the non-yielding metal's appeal as an inflation hedge and a safe haven.

* Bolstering the metal's appeal to other currency holders on Thursday, the dollar edged lower and hit its lowest since April 2018.

* A highly infectious coronavirus variant originating in Britain continued to spread globally, with California reporting its first known case.

* In a bid to help contain the fast-spreading pandemic, Britain on Wednesday became the first country to approve a vaccine developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca .

* British lawmakers approved Prime Minister Boris Johnson's post-Brexit trade deal with the European Union on Wednesday, as both sides looked to begin a new chapter of relations just days before their divorce becomes a reality.

* Silver fell 0.3% to $26.54 an ounce. Platinum gained 0.1% to $1,066.91 and palladium was up 0.2% at $2,366.01.

DATA AHEAD (GMT) 1330 U.S. Weekly Initial Jobless Claims