Gold steadied after the biggest gain in about a week, as traders assessed the outlook for US interest rates following private-sector jobs data.
Bullion held just above $3,970 an ounce, after rising 1.2% on Wednesday. Figures from ADP Research showed private-sector payrolls rose 42,000 after two months of decline. While tempering concerns of a faster deterioration, the modest increase is consistent with a general softening in labour demand.
Federal Reserve Governor Stephen Miran described the increase in employment last month as “a welcome surprise,” but reiterated that interest rates needed to be lower. Miran has repeatedly called for looser policy, dissenting against decisions to lower the Fed’s benchmark rate by a quarter percentage point in September and again in October in favour of half-point reductions.
Gold has surged by more than 50% this year, hitting a record in October before losing some ground. Rate cuts from the US central bank have helped to support prices, which have also been boosted by inflows into bullion-backed exchange-traded funds and elevated central-bank purchases. At present, the longest government shutdown in US history has delayed the release of key official data, making conditions across the world’s largest economy harder to assess.
Gold was 0.2% lower at $3,973.15 an ounce as of 8:25 a.m. in Singapore. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed. Silver and platinum were flat, while palladium fell.
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