CHICAGO, Dec. 14 (Xinhua) -- Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell further on Friday as the U.S. dollar continued to rise against a basket of other major currencies.

The most active gold contract for February 2019 delivery was down 6.00 dollars, or 0.48 percent, to settle at 1241.40 dollars per ounce.

The U.S. dollar index, a measure of the greenback against a basket of other major currencies, rose 0.4 percent to 97.48 as of 1817 GMT.

The European Central Bank (ECB) announced Thursday to end its massive four-year asset purchase program, while keeping the key interest rates for the euro area unchanged. The ECB President Mario Draghi admitted downside risk of the euro zone economy.

Weak economic performance in the eurozone, along with strong U.S. retails sales data for November, contributed to the rise of the dollar.

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

As for other precious metals, silver for March 2019 delivery went down 21.8 cents, or 1.47 percent, to close at 14.637 dollars per ounce. Platinum for January delivery was down 12.2 dollars, or 1.53 percent, to settle at 785.30 dollars per ounce.