Gold was trapped in a tight range around $1,660 an ounce on Friday, ahead of a meeting of eurozone finance ministers that may boost the bloc's bailout power, and sluggish physical demand weighed on sentiment. Spot gold rallied to a two-week high near $1,700 earlier in the week after US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke defended the low interest rate policy and cautioned it was premature to declare victory on economic recovery, triggering hopes for further monetary easing.
But the momentum faded fast, and prices dropped to a one-week low just below $1,645 in the previous session before recovering to $1,661.60 an ounce by 0634 GMT. US gold gained half a percent to $1,660.70 an ounce.