Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose more than 1 percent on Tuesday, as geopolitical tensions lifted investment demand for the precious metal.

The most active gold contract for August delivery hiked 14.8 U.S. dollars, or 1.15 percent, to settle at 1,297.5 dollars per ounce.

Prices extended their streak of gains into a third consecutive session and finished at the highest for a most-active contract since last November, according to MarketWatch.

Analysts said uncertainty surrounding a rift between Qatar and other Middle East nations, the upcoming U.K. election and European Central bank meeting lifted investment demand for the precious metal.

Weakness in the U.S. dollar also helped to boost the precious metal prices as the U.S. Dollar Index was down 0.3 percent to 96.52 as of 1930 GMT.

The index is a measure of the dollar against a basket of other major currencies. Gold and the dollar typically move in opposite directions, which means if the dollar goes down, gold futures will rise.

Weak economic data from the United States has reduced expectations of rapid U.S. interest rate rises this year, but the Federal Reserve is expected to hike rates at its June policy meeting next week.

Interest rate rises push bond yields higher and tend to strengthen the greenback, which tends to dent gold prices.

As for other precious metals, silver for July delivery inched up 12.9 cents, or 0.73 percent, to close at 17.71 dollars per ounce. Platinum for July delivery rose 5.7 dollars, or 0.6 percent, to settle at 963.3 dollars per ounce.