Online reported that gold prices rose on Thursday and hit historical highs again during the U.S. session, breaking through US$2960 per ounce. Gold's appeal remained strong due to rising tariff uncertainty and market bets that the Federal Reserve would relax monetary policy. Alex Ebkarian, chief operating officer of Allegiance Gold, said: "Gold is in a long-term bull market. We expect gold prices to trade between $3000 and $3200 this year." U.S. President Trump's latest trade policies have helped gold rise 12% so far this year, a favored asset for investors amid geopolitical and economic turmoil. In addition, data from the U.S. Department of Labor showed that PPI remained surprisingly unchanged in February, while CPI rose 0.2% last month after accelerating 0.5% in January. At the same time, initial claims for unemployment benefits fell in the United States last week, but sharp government spending cuts and an escalating trade war threatened the stability of the labor market. The Fed may be forced to cut interest rates. Lower interest rates are seen as good for gold because when yields fall, opportunity costs also fall.