Feb. 22 (Bloomberg) — Gold, little changed in London, headed for its biggest weekly advance in 19 months as lower U.S. interest rates may revive investor demand for the metal as an alternative to the dollar. Platinum dropped from a record.

The dollar traded near a three-week low against the euro on speculation U.S. economic growth will slow, forcing the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates. Gold has climbed 45 percent since the Fed in August announced a policy shift to contain the subprime mortgage collapse.

“It’s been six months this week since the Fed started cutting interest rates and gold has gone nuts,” said Adrian Ash, head of research of London-based BullionVault, a gold dealer that holds about six tons of gold for customers in vaults in London, Zurich and New York. “The more the Fed promises cheaper money, the more people will choose an alternative to the dollar.”

Gold for immediate delivery rose 9 cents, or less than 0.1 percent, to $946.19 an ounce as of 10:54 a.m. in London. Prices this week are up 4.8 percent, the biggest weekly advance since July 14, 2006. Read Full Story

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