Gold hits $1,100 an ounce

Updated: 5:20 p.m. ET

The price of gold hit a new high of $1,101.90 an ounce this morning after the Labor Department released its ugly October jobs report.

But the price fell back as the day wore on, and gold settled at $1095.70 an ounce in New York, up $8.40 and a new closing high.

Gold was up $55.30 an ounce on the week, a 5.3% gain. It's up 23.9% this year.

Gold is benefiting from a "flight to quality," Adam Klopfenstein, senior market strategist at commodities brokerage firm Lind-Waldock, told CNNMoney.com.

Gold has been on a tear as worries about inflation grow and the U.S. dollar falls.

The dollar is down 7.6% this year against a basket of six major currencies as the Federal Reserve has held its benchmark interest rate at historic lows of zero to 0.25% in an effort to boost economic growth. (Watch the CNBC video below for more analysis and ways to play the gold run up) 

Today's jobs report showed a 10.2% unemployment rate in October, which increased expectations that the Fed will keep rates at historic lows and, in turn, sent the dollar lower.

Investors who had been hoping for an economic recovery "threw in the towel" after the jobs report was released. Investors who want to protect themselves from a worsening economy "now want to own something tangible," Klopfenstein said.

"Until Washington stops exploding the deficit, the dollar will continue to weaken, and gold is going higher," Tom Pawlicki, an analyst at MF Global, told Bloomberg News.

The commodity also spiked this week after India's central bank bought 200 metric tons from the International Monetary Fund. That move suggested to traders that other central banks might follow suit and buy gold to diversify their reserves.

Charley Blaine contributed to this report.