Gold futures fell to 3-week lows in anticipation of US data

02.10.2015

On Friday, during European morning trade, gold futures reached a three-week low as traders await the upcoming release of employment data in the US non-farm payrolls, while expectations of growth rates in the US before the end of the year continues to support the US currency.

On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for December delivery lost 0.42% to $ 1108.80.

The cost of the December contracts fell to the end of the session on Thursday by 0.13% to reach $ 1113.70 per ounce.

Futures are likely to receive support at $ 1103.00, the low of September 15, and resistance at $ 1126.00, the high of September 30.

Later on Friday, investors expect the publication of data on US non-farm payrolls for September, which may help to clarify the likelihood of raising interest rates by the Federal Reserve in the near future.

Gold prices are under pressure in recent weeks amid uncertainty over how soon the US central bank will start to tighten monetary policy.

The delay in raising rates usually contributes to the demand for gold because it reduces the relative cost of the metal retention, ensuring increased profit to investors.

The dollar came under pressure, after on Thursday, Institute for Supply Management said its index of purchasing managers in US manufacturing fell to 50.2 in the last month, from 51.1 in August.

ISM report came shortly after the Labor Department reported that the number of Americans filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending September 26 increased by 10 000 to 277 000 from 267 000 the previous week, more than the projected growth with 3000.

Silver futures for December delivery fell 0.28% to $ 14.470 per troy ounce, while copper futures for December delivery rose 0.21% to $ 2.309 per pound.

Platinum was traded at $ 892.30 per troy ounce compared to $ 900 at the close of trading on Thursday, previously falling in price to its lowest level since December 2008, $ 888. For a week the prices have decreased by 5 %, since the scandal with Volkswagen, associated with the deliberate underreporting of diesel emissions, affects the demand of platinum, which is used for the production of catalytic converters for diesel engines.

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