Gold prices gained on Friday as Asian stocks traded mostly lower after China reported disappointing third-quarter GDP data.

Gold futures for December delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange slipped 0.08% at $1,226.4 a troy ounce by 1:19 AM ET (05:19 GMT).

China’s economy grew 6.5% in the third quarter from a year earlier, its weakest pace since the global financial crisis and missed expectations of a 6.6% growth.

“With Chinese equity markets continuing to drift lower, and lingering geopolitical risks such as Fed interest rate hikes, Italian budget concerns and the U.S.-China trade war, stock markets are still shaky and in no way have stabilised,” said Ronan Manly, a precious metals analyst at Singapore-based dealer BullionStar.

“This overall mix should be supportive of the gold price.”

Saudi Arabia, U.S.-China relations, the European Union and rising bond yields were also cited as tailwind for gold prices.

Gold prices returned to $1,200 in August, reaffirming its position as the safe haven of choice for risk-averse investors. Since then, it has more or less held its ground there. U.S. bond yields rallying to multiyear highs have also taken some wind out of the dollar's sails, propping up gold.

Despite recent gains, the yellow metal has declined about 10% from its April peak after investors preferred the dollar as the U.S.-China trade war unfolded against a background of higher U.S. interest rates.