The Hawkish position of the US Federal Reserve (Fed) is having a harmful effect on the price of gold. However, the metal is experiencing its biggest weekly decline since February 2023.

Gold prices were on their way to their worst week since early February, as the dollar strengthened after Fed chief Jerome Powell reiterated that further interest rate hikes were on the agenda. Spot gold was up 0.2% at $1,917.57 per ounce at 0956 GMT, while remaining close to a three-month low reached earlier in the session. Prices are down 2.1% for the week. U.S. gold futures rose 0.3 percent to $1,928.50

Cash rose 0.4% to $22.32 per ounce, but was about to see its biggest weekly decline since October 2022. Platinum rose 0.1% to $923.50

Palladium rose slightly by 0.4% to $1,288.42 after reaching its lowest level since May 2019 on Thursday. (Reporting by Seher Dareen in Bengaluru; Writing