Gold sticks near 13-month high ahead of U.S. jobs data
- Gold prices ended the U.S. day session solidly higher and closed at a 13-month high close Thursday. Weaker U.S. stock indexes and a sell-off in the U.S. dollar index were bullish elements for the precious metal on this day. A firmly bullish near-term technical posture for gold continues to invite chart-based buying interest. April Comex gold was last up $16.00 at $1,257.80 an ounce. May Comex silver was last up $0.158 at $15.18 an ounce.
The world marketplace awaits the February U.S. employment report from the Labor Department on Friday morning. That’s arguably the most important U.S. economic data point of the month. The key non-farm payrolls component of the jobs report is expected to show a rise of around 200,000. Look for more active trading in many markets, including gold, in the aftermath of the 8:30 a.m. EST report.
Traders and investors are also awaiting the National People’s Congress meeting in China that begins Saturday. Fresh economic plans are expected to be laid out by Chinese government officials.
- Gold edged lower on Friday, but was not far off a 13-month peak reached in the prior session when a weaker dollar gave bullion its best day in two weeks.
Investors are now eyeing the crucial U.S. nonfarm payrolls data due out later in the day, where a strong reading for February could stall further gains in the precious metal.
Spot gold was down 0.3 percent at $1,259.50 an ounce by 0032 GMT, after rallying nearly 2 percent on Thursday when it hit $1,267.06, its strongest since Feb. 6, 2015. The metal has gained 3 percent for the week and almost 20 percent this year to be among the top commodity performers.
Reference: Reuters, Kitco
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