Gold gains ground on fears of slower economic recovery

Gold prices rose on Friday after bleak US jobless claims data reinforced fears of a slower recovery from the coronavirus-induced economic crisis, denting the dollar and US Treasury yields.

Spot gold was up 0.2% at $1,945.45/oz by 2.36am GMT. Gold is up 0.2% so far this week, having shed 4.5% in the week to August 14, its worst in five months. US gold futures rose 0.4% to $1,953.80/oz.

“A deterioration in US labour market data, falling bond yields and continued geopolitical tensions continue to support gold,” said National Australia Bank economist John Sharma. “We see gold trading between $1,920 and $1,980 in the near term,” he said, adding that factors such as rising risk sentiment and progress on the coronavirus vaccine front could dent demand.

A technology stocks-fuelled rally on Wall Street drove Asian markets higher on Friday, limiting gold’s advance. Data on Thursday showed the number of Americans filing a new claim for unemployment benefits rose unexpectedly back above the 1-million mark last week, a setback for a struggling US job market crippled by the coronavirus pandemic. This sent the dollar index and benchmark 10-year Treasury yields lower, making gold an attractive investment for holders of other currencies.

Adding to doubts over a swift US economic rebound, Federal Reserve officials on Wednesday warned that a recovery faced a highly uncertain path, helping gold recover from a more than 3.5% slump earlier this week.

Meanwhile, the Trump administration declined to acknowledge any plans to meet China over the phase 1 trade deal after the commerce ministry in Beijing said bilateral talks would be held “in the coming days”.

Elsewhere, silver gained 0.3% to $27.30/oz and was poised for a weekly rise of about 3.5%. Platinum climbed 0.4% to $921.12/oz, while palladium eased 0.2% to $2,177.88/oz.

Reuters