CHICAGO, Jan. 9 (Xinhua) -- Gold futures on the COMEX divisionof the New York Mercantile Exchange rose on Monday as the U.S.dollar weakened.

The most active gold contract for February delivery rose 11.5U.S. dollars, or 0.98 percent, to settle at 1,184.90 dollars perounce.

Gold was given support as the U.S. Dollar Index fell by 0.24percent to 101.99 as of 1845 GMT. The index is a measure of thedollar against a basket of major currencies.

Gold and the dollar typically move in opposite directions, whichmeans if the dollar goes up, gold futures will fall as gold,measured by the dollar, becomes more expensive for investors.

The U.S. Dow Jones Industrial Average fell as well, decreasingby 0.38 percent, or 76.42 points as of 1845 GMT. Analysts note thatwhen equities post losses, the precious metal usually goes up, asinvestors are looking for a safe haven, while the opposite is truewhen U.S. equities post gains.

Although no major economic data was released on Monday,investors are still maintaining a certain level of awareness of theFed's thinking on interest rates.

Investors believe the Fed may raise rates from 0.75 to 1.00during the March FOMC meeting at the earliest. According to the CMEGroup's Fedwatch tool, the current implied probability of a hikefrom 0.50 to at least 0.75 is at 3 percent at the February meetingand 24 percent for the March meeting.

Silver for March delivery rose 16.4 cents, or 0.99 percent, toclose at 16.683 dollars per ounce. Platinum for April deliveryadded 12 dollars, or 1.24 percent, to close at 982.60 dollars perounce. Enditem