Gold markets responded swiftly on Friday to US job numbers below expectations and a weaker dollar, rising to a high of US$1,267.20 before scaling back to a new four-month low. The most active contracts, gold futures in New York for delivery in December, traded just above US$1,250 before the release of the non-farm payroll numbers, their lowest price since June 8. More than 23 million ounces of gold traded, ending the week down more than 5% at barely US$1,250/oz. There has been heavy selling since Tuesday, when the yellow metal blew past US$1300/oz. for the first time since the Brexit vote triggered its rise. Rising interest rates and government bond yields push down the price of gold, which relies strictly on price increases for returns. The US dollar is also inversely related to commodity prices and gold. The index fell below 97 against the currencies of the country's major trading partners after the payroll data release. The dollar index hit a record low of 71.6 in April of 2008 and a record high of 164.72 in February 1985, when gold bottomed out at US$284.25 an ounce.