Gold eased on Friday as investors locked in profits after the bullion surpassed $1,450 an ounce for the first time in more than six years on dovish signals on monetary policy from the U.S. Federal Reserve and fresh tensions in the Middle East.

Spot gold hit $1,452.60 an ounce in early trade, its highest since May 2013, and was down 0.5% at $1,439.41, as of 07:41 GMT.

The metal is on track for a second straight weekly gain.

U.S. gold futures jumped about 1% to $1,440.50.

At a central banking conference on Thursday, New York Fed President John Williams said policymakers need to add stimulus early to deal with lower inflation when interest rates are near zero and cannot wait for an economic disaster to unfold.

Source : Reuters