Gold surges to record after U.S. jobs

Dealers also said the market continued to find residual support from the prospect of central bank buying of gold to diversify their reserves.

"The market has the bit between their teeth -- all these investors have piled into gold in a quasi-physical sense and now they are being supported in that by the actions of Mr Central Bank," said RBS metals analyst Stephen Briggs.

The precious metal hit a record high at $1,100.90 per ounce earlier, having gained more than 25 percent this year.

By 3:14 p.m., it was bid at $1,097 a troy ounce from $1,089.55 late in New York on Thursday.

The trigger for the surge this week was news that the International Monetary Fund had sold 200 tonnes of gold to the Reserve Bank of India for $6.7 billion (4 billion pounds).

"People are focussing on pent up demand for gold from central banks in emerging markets," said Michael Lewis, head of commodities research at Deutsche Bank.

"The central bank community for the first time in 20 years is possibly going to be a net buyer of gold having been a net seller since 1988 ... Today the market will also focus on the U.S. jobs data and how the dollar reacts."

WEAK JOBS DATA

Data released earlier showed the U.S. unemployment rate rose to 10.2 percent, the highest in 26-1/2 years, as employers shed 190,000 in nonfarm payrolls in October.