Gold prices are trading mostly unchanged into Friday after the market sentiment improved following Trump’s most recent optimistic comments about a possible US-China trade deal soon. At the time of writing, GOLD is trading at a little above $1,475.

Despite the lifting of the mood in global markets, gold is set to mark a weekly gain of around 0.8% over high uncertainty on whether the US and China will be able to resolve their trade dispute anytime soon. Relations have been strained between the two world leaders ever since the US passed a law that lets it impose sanctions on Chinese and Hong Kong officials for violating human rights of anti-government protesters in Hong Kong.

Earlier this week, Trump also suggested that the resolution could take place only after the 2020 presidential elections, souring the sentiment all over again and sending gold soaring. Weak economic data from the US also supported gold’s bullishness earlier this week.

The sentiment changed, however, when Trump offered some respite by stating that negotiations with China were progressing well. With the next round of tariff hikes just around the corner, markets are widely hoping that the phase one trade deal gets confirmed soon so the next tariff hikes on Chinese imports and China’s subsequent retaliation to this can be avoided.