Gold for February delivery ended lower by $4.6 or 0.3%, to end at $1,606 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange on Friday. It rose to a high of $1,615 during intra day trading. For the week, the yellow metal rose 0.5%.
On Friday, silver prices for March delivery rose $0.03 or 0.1% to end at $29.08. For the week, silver prices dropped 1.9%.
Today's data was mixed as durable orders and new home sales topped estimates while personal income and spending missed. PCE prices - core was in-line with its 0.1% estimate.
New orders for durable goods bounced back in November, rising 3.8% following an upwardly revised flat reading in October. Excluding the volatile transportation component, new orders rose 0.3%.
New home sales numbers for November hit an annualized rate of 315,000, which is slightly more than the rate of 313,000 that had been expected, on average. The reading is a slight pickup from the upwardly revised pace of 310,000 that was posted in the prior month. Homebuilders have responded negatively to the news.
In the currency market on Friday, the Dollar Index, which weighs the strength of dollar against basket of six other currencies rose by almost 0.0.7%.
Generally, a stronger dollar pressures demand for dollar-denominated commodities, such as crude oil and gold, which become more expensive for holders of other currencies and also vice versa. But bullions have registered increase in prices despite strong dollar in recent times and vice versa.
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