Five sessions put gold on track for third straight week of gains as market attention shifted to U.S. non-farm payrolls, which could provide further clues about the trajectory of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy 's record rise stopped on Friday. .
spot gold Money The metal was down 0.5% at $2,278.50 an ounce at 0328 GMT, after hitting a record high of $2,305.04 on Thursday.us gold futures Money It fell 0.5% to $2,296.90.
“Gold will continue to rise in a normal decline,” said Luca Santos, an analyst at ACY Securities.
Santos said the market is being driven by a weaker U.S. dollar, investor expectations that the Fed will cut interest rates this year, economic uncertainty and rising tensions in the Middle East, and even more so for gold. he added.
Bullion is up 2.3% so far, marking its third consecutive week of gains, also driven by strong central bank buying and demand from momentum-chasing funds.
“Gold is trading in overbought territory,” said Improved precious metals trader Hugo Pascal, adding that his initial target is $2,250 and that a correction is likely within the next few days.
The focus now shifts to the March non-farm payrolls (NFP) data to be released at 12:30 p.m. Japan time, which could shed more light on the timing of the Fed's first rate cut.
“Strengthening of the NFP puts pressure on the metal complex, indicating increasing inflationary pressures,” Pascal said.
Fed Chairman Jerome Powell reiterated that the US central bank has time to think about its first rate cut, given the strength of the economy and recent high inflation rates.
Traders are currently pricing in about a 65% chance that the Fed will cut interest rates in June, according to the CME FedWatch tool. When interest rates fall, the opportunity cost of holding bullion decreases.
Others are spot silver XAGUSD1! It fell 1.7% to $26.49 an ounce after hitting its highest since June 2021 earlier this month.platinum PL1! The stock fell 0.4% to $921.66. Both metals were on track for weekly gains.
palladium XPDUSD1! It fell 1.9% to $1,002.03.