Gold prices on track for monthly, quarterly gains

Gold bars

Gold prices advanced today, Sept. 30, heading for achieving monthly and quarterly gains, supported by the Federal Reserve starting a cycle of monetary easing after more than four years of tightening.

Bullion for December delivery increased 0.45%, or $12, to $2,680.10 per ounce at 10:17 am Makkah time. Spot prices, meanwhile, held ground at $2,658.05 an ounce.

Likewise, silver futures for September delivery added 0.28% to $31.905 per ounce, while platinum spot prices plunged by 0.38% to $1,000.05 an ounce.

The precious metal gained 6% in September, after hitting a fresh record high of $2,685.42 an ounce last Thursday. It is on track to post gains of more than 14% in the third quarter of this year, marking its best quarterly performance since early 2016.

This came thanks to the Fed cutting its key interest rate by 50 basis points at its meeting held in mid-September, amid expectations that the US central bank will continue its monetary easing throughout the rest of the year.

All eyes are now on the US labor market data due to be released later this week, led by the monthly jobs report and the unemployment rate.