SINGAPORE (Commodity Online) : Gold prices eased slightly in early Asian trade Friday but likely to gain later during the day on positive US economic reports.

Spot gold was seen trading at $1,089.90 an ounce at 11.00 a.m Singapore time while silver rose 0.2 percent to $17.44 an ounce at the same time.

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On Thursday, The most active gold contract for December delivery climbed 2 U.S. dollars, or 0.2 percent, to finish at 1,089.30 dollars an ounce.

Analysts said the yellow metal is likely to climb further as signs of economic recovery sap demand for the dollar, increasing the appeal of the precious metal.

The dollar traded at $1.4864 per euro in Asian trade from $1.4871 in New York and is down 1 percent this week.

Gold is approaching $1,100 an ounce for the first time as investors seek to protect their wealth from the threat of inflation and the debasement of the U.S. currency.

The metal touched an all-time high of $1,097.72 on Nov. 4 and has gained 4.2 percent this week, the most since the week ended Oct. 9.

U.S. labor productivity, a measure of employee output per hour, jumped at a 9.5 percent annual rate in the third quarter, exceeding the highest economist forecast, data showed Thursday.

Among other precious metals, platinum advanced 0.1 percent to $1,358 an ounce and palladium was unchanged at $330.75 an ounce.