Gold prices advance as US economic data looms

Gold bars

Gold prices surged today, Sept. 12, as investors awaited US jobless claims and producer price inflation data, after erasing all gains achieved yesterday on the release of the August reading for consumer price inflation that showed an increase on a monthly basis.

Bullion for December delivery added 0.21%, or $5.4, to $2,547.80 an ounce at 09:09 am Makkah time, with spot prices also soaring 0.39% to $2,521.48 per ounce.

Silver futures for September delivery, likewise, jumped 0.73% to $29.14 per ounce, in tandem with a 0.65% hike in platinum spot prices to $962.92 an ounce.

Gold futures ended yesterday’s trading on a flat note, following data from the US Labor Department showed the consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.2% for the second straight month in August. Its core counterpart also gained 0.3% after climbing by 0.2% in July.

Although US annual inflation slowed to 2.5% in August from 2.9%, this data has tamed investors' forecasts that the Federal Reserve will make a large interest rate cut at its meeting next week. The most likely possibility is a 25-basis-point rate reduction.

US producer price inflation data is due later today, amid expectations of a 0.2% rise on a monthly basis in August, after remaining unchanged in the previous month.

In addition, the weekly change in initial claims for US unemployment benefits data is due later in the day. Estimates indicate an uptick to 229,000 applications from 227,000 in the week before.