Gold Prices Fall Pending US Jobless Data

Gold prices were lower as market traders waited for jobless data before the weekend to have a more reliable reading of the economy.

Gold for settlement in April was down 0.3 percent ($1,200.90) per troy ounce at the New York Mercantile Exchange (COMEX Division).

Moody’s and Automatic Data Processing conducted an employment survey which showed business hiring last month as moderate. This was what economic experts predicted.

Sharp increase in employment can boost justification for the US Central Bank to lift up interest rates earlier. This move can affect gold which needs to contend with yield-bearing investments once the costs of borrowing move up.

Securities specialists believe weak data will probably encourage the market to put off rate-hike expectations which can prop up gold. Robust data can bring it forward and depress prices, according to analysts.

Gold was pressured by the rally of US stocks which pulled away investors during the past months. S&P 500 index as well as Dow Jones Industrial Average ended with fresh records while NASDAQ Composite surged above 5000 after almost 15 years.

Depletion of gold-concentrated exchange-traded funds has impacted the precious metal’s price.

The decline brought down other valuable metals lower. The June contract for palladium was down 0.1 percent at $830.65 per troy ounce.