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Gold climbs to a seven-week high above $4,300 ahead of US jobs data
Gold is up more than 6% for the week so far, with markets pricing about a 55% chance of a September Fed hike after a prior roughly 67% reading.
Gold prices extended their recovery on Friday, with XAU/USD trading around $4,322 and climbing to a fresh seven-week high as technical buying picked up, FXStreet reported. The move comes despite a cautious tone tied to Middle East developments and uncertainty around the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate outlook.
Traders turned their focus to US Nonfarm Payrolls, due at 12:30 GMT, with economists expecting 80K jobs added in July after a 57K increase in June. The unemployment rate is forecast to hold at 4.2%, and the data could alter expectations for Fed policy, which in turn can influence how gold performs.
FXStreet said the week’s gold advance was initially supported by optimism that the Strait of Hormuz could reopen sooner, after reports that Iran and Oman moved closer to an agreement on a proposed shipping route. Oil prices fell sharply earlier in the week, easing energy-driven inflation concerns and weighing on the US dollar and Treasury yields.
Still, the article noted that energy-related inflation risks have not disappeared because oil retains a geopolitical risk premium. FXStreet cited Fars News saying Iran struck what it described as “hostile targets” in the Strait of Hormuz, and said the proposed Iran-Oman arrangement would not amount to a full reopening. It also said CME FedWatch Tool data points to about a 55% probability of a rate hike at the September meeting, down from roughly 67% a week ago.
Latest closeGold $4,292.00 ▲1.1%