Gold futures slumped Friday in the wake of an upbeat jobs report, turning negative for the year and finishing below $1,200 U.S. an ounce in its lowest settlement since Feb. 5, 2010.
Gold for December delivery tumbled $22.20, or 1.8%, to $1,192.90 U.S. an ounce, the first times a most-active gold futures contract closed under $1,200 U.S. since December, according to FactSet data. Gold turned negative for 2014, as the encouraging employment report weighed on haven demand.
The Labor Department on Friday said the U.S. economy created a better-than-anticipated 248,000 jobs in September and hiring in August turned out stronger than initially reported, showing the economy entered the fall with rising momentum. The unemployment rate also dropped to a six-year low of 5.9%.
Gold futures were down ahead of the jobs report, and then fell further after the data while U.S. stock futures have added to their gains.
Gold fell 1.9% for the week and is down 1.1% year to date. December silver gained 10 cents, or 0.6%, to $17.48 U.S. an ounce.
