By William L. Watts, MarketWatch
FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) — Gold futures rose on Friday, as euro-zone finance ministers boosted the region’s firewall against the spread of the sovereign-debt crisis.
Gold futures for June delivery GCM2 +0.90% rose $15 to $1,669.90 an ounce in recent trade. For the quarter, gold futures are on track for a 6.2% gain.
The ICE dollar index DXY -0.44% fell 0.5% to 78.815. A weaker dollar tends to boost dollar-denominated commodities. More on firewall.
The euro rose versus the dollar after euro-zone finance ministers on Friday agreed to temporarily raise the lending capacity of the region’s rescue funds to 700 billion euros ($934 billion) from €500 billion. Read more about the decision.
Meanwhile, data showed that U.S. consumer spending rose 0.8% in February, largely due to higher energy costs, while income rose 0.2%.
Later this morning, Chicago-area purchasing managers’ data and the final University of Michigan consumer sentiment report are on tap.
William L. Watts is MarketWatch's European bureau chief, based in Frankfurt.
