NEW YORK - Gold rose above $3,000 for the first time as President Donald Trump's trade wars boosted demand for safe-haven assets, while stock markets bounced on signs US lawmakers would avert a government shutdown.
Major US indices opened higher and remained in positive territory through the day, shrugging off a downcast reading on US consumer sentiment.
European stock markets were also given a lift after Germany moved closer to approving a massive infrastructure and defense spending program.
Paris and Frankfurt both rebounded after losses the previous day on US tariff threats.
Germany's likely next chancellor Friedrich Merz said his conservative party had struck a deal with the Greens on boosting defense and infrastructure spending, paving the way for the plan's approval in parliament.
Gold, a haven in times of uncertainty, rose to as much as $3,004 an ounce before falling back to just under $3,000.
The precious metal was "boosted on increased haven demand amid trade war risks and recent stock market volatility", said Fawad Razaqzada, an analyst at City Index and Forex.com.
In the latest salvo, Trump threatened to impose 200 percent tariffs on wine, champagne and other alcoholic beverages from European Union countries.
Wall Street has been hammered in recent sessions by trade tensions, with the S&P 500 slipping into a technical correction Thursday, having fallen more than 10 percent from a record high it hit just last month.
The broad-based S&P 500 finished at 5,638.94, up 2.1 percent for the day, but down 2.3 percent for the week.
Some analysts warned that Friday's rebound would be short-lived.