Today, Friday, gold prices are heading for a fourth consecutive weekly loss, as data on US jobs and hawkish comments from US Federal Reserve policymakers boosted bets on raising interest rates for a longer period, which affected the non-yielding yellow metal.
And gold settled in instant transactions at $ 1910.20 an ounce, but it fell 0.5% during the week. And US gold futures recorded 1916.00 dollars, almost unchanged.
An increase in the number of private sector jobs in the United States indicates a strong labor market despite the increased risk of a recession from raising interest rates. Investors are now awaiting non-farm payrolls data for the month of June to get more indications on the path of monetary policy, according to Reuters.
“The solid US jobs market … supports the continuation of the Fed’s push of the benchmark interest rate higher,” said Tim Waterer, senior market analyst at KCM Trade.
Higher interest rates increase the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding gold, and market participants are also closely watching US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s visit to Beijing.
“Any potential escalation of trade tensions between the world’s two largest economies could hurt market sentiment… and gold might get some demand from safe-haven buying,” Waterer said.
As for other precious metals, silver fell 0.4% to $22.6567 an ounce, and platinum fell 0.3% to $898.83.
Palladium lost 0.3% to $1,238.36, but was on track for a weekly gain of 1%.
