Gold prices held steady on Friday ahead of the U.S. jobs report that could help investors gauge the Federal Reserve’s rate-hike path, and were headed for their biggest weekly gain since March.
Spot gold was little changed at $1,709.69 U.S. per ounce, overnight Friday.
Prices have risen about 3% so far in the week, helped by a retreat in the dollar and Treasury yields from multi-year peaks.
U.S. gold futures were flat at $1,719.90.
Investors are now focused on the U.S. nonfarm payrolls report due later in the day, with economists forecasting 250,000 jobs to have been added last month, compared with 315,000 in August.
The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits increased by the most in four months last week, but the labor market remains tight even as demand for labor is cooling amid higher interest rates.
Spot silver fell 0.4% to $20.56 per ounce, platinum dipped 0.4% to $918.38 and palladium dropped 0.6% to $2,247.62.
