Gold jumped more than three per cent after an unexpected contraction in the United States jobs market , extending a rebound from its slump below US$4,000 an ounce. Prices rose as much as 3.1 per cent to US$4,371.93 an ounce, hitting the highest since mid-June, before paring gains. Data showed U.S. employers cut jobs in July and hiring in the prior two months was revised lower, suggesting the labour market is weaker than previously thought. The soft jobs data is likely to partially allay worries that the Federal Reserve will soon move to raise interest rates , which would be a headwind for gold as an asset that bears no interest. A Bloomberg gauge of the dollar slumped as much as 0.5 per cent after the data, giving a boost to commodities like gold that are priced in the currency. The jobs report helped extend bullion’s weekly gain to more than seven per cent, the most in over six months, with dip-buyers emerging in growing force since a slump that took gold into a bear market in June. Friday’s advance also signals that gold buyers were little moved by the ratcheting tensions in the Middle East . Local media reported that Iran struck “hostile targets” in Hormuz and wouldseek to bar U.S. and Israeli ships from passing through. Separately, Houthi militants said they conducted a “large-scale” attack against forces from Yemen’s Saudi-backed government. Meanwhile, hedge funds and money managers boosted their bullish gold bets to the highest in more than six months in the week ending Aug. 4, according to the latest CFTC data. Gold has fallen by nearly a fifth since the U.S.-Iran war began in late February. The conflict sent energy prices soaring, stoking inflationary pressures and raising the likelihood that rates will stay higher for longer. Gold isn’t reacting strongly to the flare-ups because its early-week rally wasn’t entirely driven by deescalation, said Justin Lin, an analyst at Global X ETFs. “The original move looked like a technical breakout with some borrowed momentum from the Iran negotiation and doubts around Fed hawkishness,” he said. Currently, it is “more about buyers taking back control rather than a strict reaction to the Middle East talks,” he added. On another front, gold-backed exchange-traded funds in China racked in more inflows this week, extending the longest such streak since March. Institutional investors see current prices as an attractive entry point, and confidence was also boosted by the metal’s ability to hold above the key US$4,000-an-ounce level. Spot gold was 2.5 per cent higher at US$4,345.47 an ounce at 3:41 p.m. in New York . Silver was up 3.4 per cent at US$63.62 an ounce. Platinum and palladium also advanced. —With assistance from Wendy Wells and Yvonne Yue Li. Bloomberg.com
Gold jumps as weak U.S. jobs data adds fuel to bullion’s rebound
