Gold climbed off session lows on Thursday after weak Chinese factory activity jolted stock markets in Asia, sending investors back to the precious metal despite expectations the US Federal Reserve will scale back its monetary stimulus. Spot gold rose 0.5 percent to $1,375.16 an ounce by 0644 GMT. It hit a low of $1,356.24 earlier in the session, not far from a two-year trough of $1,321.35 plumbed in April. US gold futures rose 0.49 percent to $1,374.10 an ounce.
Spot silver was up slightly but platinum and palladium were lower.