CHICAGO, Feb. 20 (Xinhua) -- Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange edged higher on Wednesday, with optimism on U.S.-China trade talks feeding the possibility of higher gold demand from China.

The most active gold contract for April delivery went up 3.10 dollars, or 0.23 percent, to settle at 1,347.90 dollars per ounce.

Financial markets await the latest trade developments, as China and the United States have a new round of economic and trade consultations in Washington this week.

The precious metal was also boosted by weakened greenback. The U.S. dollar index, which measures the buck against six rivals, went down 0.21 percent to 96.32 as of 1830 GMT.

Gold usually moves in opposite directions with the U.S. dollar, which means if the dollar goes strong, gold futures will fall as gold, priced in U.S. dollar, becomes expensive for investors using other currencies.

As for other precious metals, silver for March delivery was up 21.00 cents, or 1.32 percent, to settle at 16.177 dollars per ounce. Platinum for April delivery added 13.20 dollars, or 1.61 percent, to close at 834.20 dollars per ounce.