Gold rose Thursday as the Bank of Japan held off from expanding monetary stimulus, boosting the yen versus the dollar, and after the Federal Reserve signaled that it was in no rush to tighten monetary policy.
The Fed left interest rates unchanged after its latest meeting on Wednesday and, while keeping the door open to a hike in June, showed little sign it was in a hurry to tighten policy amid an apparent slowdown in the U.S. economy.
Spot gold was up 1.7 percent at $1,266.70 an ounce, off an earlier one-week high of $1,258.70, while U.S. gold futures for June delivery were up $18.20 an ounce at $1,268.60.