Latest News

Gold to gain weekly on Dollar weakness and Safe-haven Demand

Gold prices rose on Friday, heading towards a weekly increase. This was helped by the retreat of the U.S. Dollar and inflows into safe-haven assets as President Donald Trump's trade deadline loomed.

As of 0617 GMT, spot gold increased 0.5%, to $3,343.07 an ounce. Bullion has risen by about 2.1% in the last week.

U.S. Gold Futures rose 0.3% to $3.352.50.

Gold became less expensive for holders of other currencies as the dollar index fell by 0.2%.

The apprehension over the fiscal situation in America (after Trump's sweeping bill to cut taxes passed Congress) as well as the lingering uncertainties about the July 9 deadline on the tariff issue have boosted the demand for safe-haven assets, said Ricardo Evangelista senior analyst at brokerage company ActivTrades.

Trump announced on Friday that Washington would begin sending letters to other countries, a departure from the earlier plans of individual trade agreements. He announced reciprocal tariffs between 10% and 50% on April 2. However, he reduced the majority to 10% by July 9, to allow time for negotiations.

Trump's tax cut legislation passed its final hurdle before Congress on Thursday. It makes his 2017 tax cuts permanent and funds his immigration crackdown.

The data showed that U.S. jobs grew unexpectedly well in June. However, nearly half of this increase came from the non-farm sector. Private industry's gains were the lowest in eight months, as businesses struggled with rising economic headwinds.

The latest U.S. employment data confirms a slowdown in the economy but not a standstill. This will reduce the pressure on Fed to lower interest rates any time soon, said UBS commodity analysts Giovanni Staunovo.

Palladium fell 0.1% and spot silver rose 0.1%, to $36.66 per ounce.

Platinum gained 0.7% per ounce to $1,376.33 and is on track for a fifth consecutive week of gains. (Reporting by Brijesh Patel in Bengaluru; Editing by Harikrishnan Nair)

(source: Reuters)