Gold falls ahead of US jobs data, heading for second weekly loss

Gold prices declined on Friday, positioning the metal for its second consecutive weekly loss. The drop was driven by a stronger US dollar and higher American Treasury yields, while market participants awaited upcoming US employment data for clues regarding the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy trajectory.

Spot and futures price movements

In immediate trading, spot gold fell 0.4% to $4,161.58 per ounce. This represents a decline of approximately 3% since the start of the week. Meanwhile, US gold futures for December delivery slipped 0.3% to $4,191.10.

Dollar strength and yield pressures

The US dollar is trending toward a weekly gain, making dollar-priced metals more expensive for holders of other currencies. On Thursday, yields on 10-year and 30-year US Treasury bonds reached their highest levels since 2002.

Fed outlook and inflation data

The non-farm payrolls report for September is scheduled for release at 12:30 GMT. Two Federal Reserve policymakers expressed an unusually clear stance this week, stating that additional data is needed before deciding on further interest rate hikes.

Data released last Wednesday showed US inflation rose less than expected in August, following a downward revision of the July Personal Consumption Expenditures price index. Traders now assign only a roughly 25% probability to a rate hike this month, down from about 70% earlier in the week. However, expectations remain at 79% for a hike in December.

Labor market signals and other metals

New claims for unemployment benefits in the US fell to near 57-year lows last week. Layoffs also decreased in September, indicating continued stability in the labor market.

Among other precious metals, spot silver dropped 0.2% to $60.71. Platinum declined 0.3% to $1,718.80, while palladium rose 0.6% to $1,177.80.