Gold holding above $1,750 after slipping early Wednesday as the dollar and Treasury yields strengthened and investors awaited the release of key jobs data for September.
The first of this week’s jobs reports — the ADP Private Payroll data — made little impact on the yellow metal when released this morning. Private jobs rose by 568,000 in September, beating the Dow Jones estimate of 425,000. Companies with 500 and more employees led by creating 390,000 jobs.
Investors now turn their eyes to the monthly nonfarm payrolls report due out Friday by the Labor Department. These numbers are expected to shed more light on the timetable for tapering of stimulus measures by the Federal Reserve.
December gold futures slid 0.4% Tuesday to settle at $1,760.90 an ounce on Comex. The front-month contract increased 0.1% in the first two days of the week. Gold retreated 3.4% in September after gaining just 90 cents in August. It dropped $14.60 in the third quarter. The yellow metal is down 7.1% so far in 2021. Currently, the December contract is down $2.40 (-0.14%) an ounce to $1,758.50 and the DG spot price is $1,758.10.
In addition to the monthly jobs report from the Labor Department on Friday, investors will be closely watching Thursday’s release of the weekly initial jobless claims for last week.
Rising inflation has put pressure on the Fed to taper its stimulus measures and raise low interest rates. Gold, the dollar and Treasurys are all traditional hedges against inflation, but much of that trade has gone into the other assets this year. The dollar is trading near its highest levels for the year, making gold less attractive as an alternate investment.
Chicago Fed President Charles Evans told CNBC Thursday that inflation near a 30-year high is likely to be temporary and that once it fades, it’s likely to hold below the central bank’s 2% target. He said inflation was caused by supply-chain bottlenecks and other issues.
December silver futures decreased 0.2% Tuesday to settle at $22.61 an ounce on Comex. The front-month contract gained 0.3% in the first two days of the week. Silver retreated 8.2% in September, its fourth consecutive monthly decline, and plummeted 16% in the third quarter. The metal is down 14% so far this year. Silver prices are tied to industrial demand. The December silver contract is currently down $0.183 (-0.81%) an ounce to $22.425 and the DG spot price is $22.54.
Spot platinum rose 10 cents Tuesday to $972.00 an ounce, but it has retreated 1.2% so far this week. The metal lost 5.3% last month and 10% last quarter. It’s down 9.5% so far this year. Currently, the DG spot price is up $15.40 an ounce to $987.20.
Spot palladium increased 0.7% Tuesday to $1,924.50 an ounce, though it dropped 0.8% in the first two days of this week. It lost 23% in September, 31% in the third quarter and is down 21% so far in 2021. The DG spot price is dropped this morning, currently down $33.90 an ounce to $1,898.50.
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