Gold soars on signs of calming US labor market momentum

Gold bars

Gold prices maintained an uptrend today, Jan. 9, following a slowdown in the pace of adding new jobs in the US private sector which signaled a calming labor market momentum, despite the increased profit-taking.

February gold futures climbed by 0.27%, or $7.20, to $2,679.60 per ounce at 11:17 am Makkah time. Meanwhile, spot prices held steady at $2,661.86 an ounce, as profit-taking kicked in after the yellow metal approached a four-week peak during yesterday's trading.

Elsewhere, March silver futures rose 0.15% to $30.73 per ounce, while platinum spot prices plunged by 0.61% to $952.31 an ounce.

Gold prices were supported by the ADP report released yesterday, which showed that the US private sector added fewer-than-expected jobs in December 2024, which pulled back investors’ concerns about the Federal Reserve’s monetary easing policy.

However, US weekly jobless claims data showed that the number of applications filed during the week ended Jan. 4 slumped by 10,000 to 201,000 in total, marking the lowest level in 11 months.

Given these mixed trends, investors are closely eyeing the monthly jobs report from the Labor Department due tomorrow, Friday, to form a clearer picture of the labor market stance. The US economy is likely to have added 154,000 new jobs in December 2024, compared to 227,000 in the month before.

“Prices are trading in a narrow range and there is some profit-booking in place. A new trigger is needed for gold to breach its resistance,” Ajay Kedia, director at Kedia Commodities in Mumbai, was quoted as saying by Reuters.

But optimism about the calm momentum of the US labor market boosted the performance of the yellow metal, despite the 0.12% rise in the US dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, to 109.22 points.