Good U.S. employment data has strengthened the Federal Reserve's bet on higher and longer interest rates. As a result, the price of gold rose slightly on Friday. However, it is on track to suffer a fourth consecutive weekly loss.

Spot gold was up 0.3% at $1,915.79 per ounce at 0902 GMT, with analysts attributing the small increase to bargain hunting. U.S. gold futures rose 0.3% to $1,921.80

Investors are now waiting for the Labor Department's employment report for further confirmation of the Fed's likely strategy. A Reuters survey of economists showed that the number of non-farm jobs likely increased by 225,000 last month, after rising by 339,000 in May.

Cash was down 0.2% to $22.71 per ounce, platinum up 0.7% to $908.09, and palladium down 0.9% to $1,230.12 (Seher Dareen Bengaluru report; Jason Neely edition).