Written by Sherin Elizabeth Varghese
(Reuters) – Gold prices tumbled on Thursday as traders awaited key U.S. jobs data and Federal Reserve officials reiterated their expectations for a rate cut in 2024, although the timing is unclear. It rose to an all-time high.
Spot gold was stable at $2,299.28 an ounce at 0343 GMT, having hit a record high of $2,304.09 in early trading. Bullion prices have been hitting record highs in each session since last Thursday.
US gold futures rose 0.2% to $2,318.70.
Michael Langford, chief investment officer at Scorpion Minerals, said: “What's driving the gold price up is that currencies are depreciating against the US dollar globally for a variety of reasons…People are basically “They are acquiring gold as a means of protection against local currency depreciation.”
Federal Reserve officials, including U.S. Central Bank President Jerome Powell, on Wednesday continued to focus on the need for more discussion and data before financial markets expect to cut interest rates in June.
U.S. services growth slowed further in March, boding well for the inflation outlook. US employment data for March is due to be released on Friday, with new inflation data due next week.
“If non-farm payrolls are in line with expectations or worse than expected in terms of the weakness in the job market, that would be positive for the likelihood of a rate cut, which would be positive for gold,” Langford said. added.
When interest rates fall, the opportunity cost of holding bullion decreases.
Elsewhere, spot silver fell 0.5% to $27.08 an ounce, platinum fell 0.1% to $935.39 and palladium rose 0.4% to $1.017.83.
(Reporting by Sherin Elizabeth Varghese in Bengaluru; Editing by Shonak Dasgupta)