On Friday gold advanced before the release of
monthly data on U.S. employment that will provide direction on
the outlook for borrowing costs in the world’s largest economy, as Bloomberg reports.
Bullion for immediate delivery advanced as much as 0.5
percent to $1,214.35 an ounce, and traded at $1,212.95 by 3:15
p.m. in Singapore, according to Bloomberg generic pricing. The
metal climbed on Jan. 6 to $1,223.19, the highest level since
Dec. 16, as oil’s retreat to less than $50 a barrel sent global
equities tumbling, and is 2.1 percent higher this week.
Gold for February delivery gained 0.3 percent to $1,212.30 an ounce on the Comex in New York after falling for two days. Futures rose on Jan. 6 to $1,223.30, the highest since Dec. 16, and are set to halt three weeks of losses. Assets in the SPDR Gold Trust, the largest bullion-backed exchange-traded product, were unchanged yesterday at the lowest level since September 2008.
Today the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell after closing
yesterday at a record high as Federal Reserve of Minneapolis
President Narayana Kocherlakota said raising interest rates this
year would hinder a recovery in inflation.
Today's data is expected to show employers added 200,000 or more jobs for an 11th month, supporting the case for raising rates, which Chair Janet Yellen has said is unlikely to happen before late April.
“While the expectation for inflation is to remain low, a
delay in ’liftoff’ would be viewed as positive by the bullion
market,” James Steel, an analyst at HSBC Securities (USA) Inc.,
wrote in a note.
“The employment numbers are generally influential in determining near-term gold prices. A good number, near or above consensus, could weigh on gold.”
Silver for immediate delivery increased 0.2 percent to $16.392 an ounce, on course to snap a three-week drop after prices rose on Jan. 6 to $16.7091, the highest since Dec. 15.
Platinum added 0.4 percent to $1,223.15 an ounce, heading for a weekly advance. Palladium rose 0.5 percent to $795.75 an ounce, little changed this week.
