Gold prices steady as global recession fears ease

Gold prices held ground today, Aug. 8, after strong US job growth eased recession fears, suggesting that the Federal Reserve is likely to continue with aggressive interest rate hikes to curb inflation.

Gold futures for December delivery settled at $1,789.6 an ounce at 9:07 am Makkah time, while spot prices reached $1,775.74 per ounce.

Meanwhile, silver futures for September delivery saw a modest rise of 0.22% to $19.89 an ounce. The spot price for platinum, on the other hand, fell 1.2% to $924.98, with the spot price of palladium steady at $2,128.52 an ounce.

The main dollar index, which measures the performance of the US currency against a basket of six currencies, settled at 106.569 points.

The US jobs data buoyed the possibility of the Fed raising interest rates by 75 basis points next month, in line with the central bank's previous moves in June and July.

According to Reuters, Fed Governor Michelle Bowman said this week, “The US Federal Reserve should consider more 75-basis-point interest rate hikes at coming meetings in order to bring high inflation back down to the central bank's goal.”