Gold prices were on track to post a gain of nearly 1% for the week, as the non-yielding metal’s appeal was boosted by major central banks standing pat on interest rates, with focus now shifting to a monthly U.S. jobs report due later in the day.
Spot gold rose 0.2% to $1,794.83 per ounce overnight U.S. gold futures for December delivery gained 0.2% at $1,796.90 per ounce.
Investors will be keenly watching U.S. monthly jobs data due this morning (8:30 EDT) to get a critical view of the economy after a report on Thursday showed the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell drastically.
The Federal Reserve this week stuck to its view that inflation would prove "transitory" and would likely not require a fast rise in interest rates. Following that the Bank of England surprised markets by keeping rates on hold.
Given the Fed’s view and inflationary pressures, experts are saying gold should find some support at current levels.
The dovish tones struck by these two central banks helped gold shrug off the early losses of the week and put it on pace to end the week 0.8% higher.
Extremely low interest rates to spur economic growth during the pandemic have pushed gold prices to new highs over the last two years, as an easy monetary policy cuts the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding assets.
Elsewhere, spot silver was unchanged at $23.77 U.S. per ounce. Platinum rose 0.4% to $1,029.48 U.S. per ounce and palladium jumped 1.3% to $2,025.10 U.S. per ounce.
